Tekken
by Covington
Summary: To lead his enemies out into the open Heihachi Mishima announces The King of Iron Fist Tournament. But old demons from his past won't die so easily. Can he right his wrongs and save the world too? This is Tekken I
1. 35 to 27 Years Before Tekken I

As the sun began to set into the horizon, the water began to glisten with an array of gem like colors. The cloud began to slightly thicken, the sky cascaded into a series of colors like a kaleidoscope, the birds slowly began to recede back to their nest and prepare for the inevitable night that was soon to follow. The cool night air swept in like a wave, the smells of the villages to the south flew into the boundaries of Hon-maru, the water by the small dock rippled with the life of fish, who swam in slow spurts attempting to throw off their natural predators; the larger fish, the egret, the large turtles. Fish were the prime example of human nature in its most simplest form, they swam searching for food and attempting not to be killed by predators. In recent years that's how life had been unfolding for one family, swimming quietly avoiding predators and trying to create something bigger, better for itself. Even in the still of night the aversion continued, sleep wasn't a luxury anyone could afford, one had to be aware of their surroundings at all times under pain of defeat and total elimination. But being too aware also posed a problem, greed, insatiability were just as dangerous as not paying attention. Every peak was not to be claimed, every prize was not one's own, the slightest amount of excess could easily create a destructive quality of consumption, like the ant who dwells too close to the ant-lion or the fish that must investigate the hook, a greedy man was destined for a complete and total demise. Even a fellow fish could turn to be a piranha waiting to devour in a flurry of messy deadly attacks, and if one wasn't careful enough they could be fodder.

Today an unlucky fish was too curious, the quiet gleam of the sun reflecting off the water and into it, softly touching the metal of the hook was too much to ignore, before it could even realize it was caught in a trap it was snatched out of the water and on its way to oblivion. As it flopped helplessly on the hook in front of a sun almost engulfed into the horizon the fish's eye met that of its killer, no remorse in its eyes, just a general understanding of its being the killer and the fish being the prey. That look was cold and caring, but the fish did not know that, it only knew fear and the crushing feeling of death approaching, but not of death itself and in that it was lucky, it would pass out into nothingness, never knowing it would not come back. Into the deep sleep of mortality without the pain of knowledge and inherited wisdom.

Was this the luck of life? Was dying less terrifying if one wasn't aware of its existence? Or was knowledge and wisdom an award worth having even in the face of death? Wasn't being the king of creatures enough to wipe out the fear of death? For a human being mortality was in the hands of God and no creature could replicate it perfectly. They boy watched the fish as it jerked a few more times and then eventually died. He pondered if this was his doing, or was God manipulating him? And if it were did that mean he wasn't in control of his life? Was he a servant to God?

"Mishima!" A voice called in the distance, the boy was suddenly thrown from his reverie and standing in the real world. The night air, now cold, nipped at his skin, the fish had gone stiff and he was just standing without purpose. The voice of his father was both frightening and inspiring, for his father was a powerful man, one who's physical power was only rivaled by his knowledge and wisdom. Sometimes he wondered if his father feared death, no one could defeat him in battle and he knew so much about, seemingly, everything that the idea of nothingness seemed impossible. If there was a place of nothing then his father would already know about it and be comfortable in it. The boy wanted to know what it meant to be this knowledgeable, what did it mean to be his father.

Before he could call again the boy ran back to his families small compound and bowed as he entered before his father. The massive man nodded as a confirmation and gestured to his son, as he did the muscles in his arm swelled as if they were about to spring from his body and attack.

"Have you caught anything?" The man asked, his voice vibrated the room, his gaze, his sheer presence was enough to topple a grown bull, and yet his son stood there without breaking into pieces.

"I caught a fish" the boy answered, the man nodded again and stroked his elaborate beard and said nothing for a long moment. The boy waited silently for something more to happen.

"Are you not going to ask me if I caught anything?" The man asked, the boy cringed at his mistake and nodded.

"Master, did you catch anything?" The boy asked, the mood of the man changed, his muscles constricted slightly.

"I am only your master when we are training. I am your father right now." The man said sternly, the boy again cringed and nodded.

"Father, did you catch anything?" The boy asked again, the man smiled and stroked his beard again, he slowly placed his hand behind his back and grabbed something before throwing it forcibly on the table between them. Sitting on the table was a stack of twenty fish, the water from the fish dripped on the floor loudly in the silence of the room.

"Do you know why you caught only one fish?" The man asked leaning towards his son, commanding his attention and looking into his eyes. The boy shook his head and attempting to match his father's gaze.

"No father, I don't know." The boy answered truthfully. The man smiled.

"It's because you lose focus on what you're doing…" The man explained. "…Your mind wanders onto different things and if you don't focus on the hook then why should the fish?" The man went on.

"I…don't understand Father." the boy admitted.

"My son, when you are attempting to bait something, you must put emphasis on what you're trying to bait your prey with. If you don't believe its important then they won't either." The man talked slowly and methodically. The words fell from his mouth and touched his son's ears like a powerful storm in the distance.

"I see, I apologize father" The boy whispered.

"What were you focused on?" The Father asked without pause. The boy hesitated, but, knew that his father had already seen it, to lie to a man with such wisdom was harder than lying to oneself. The man knew the truth before he did, the test was to see if the boy could identify and accept it.

"Death." the boy answered. The man acted surprised and nodded openly.

"Mortality is something many men wonder about" the man explained. "Its something that comes for everyone, but it is not your enemy. Your time on this earthly realm is limited, but your goal is also finite it is always achievable no matter how large it can be. So long as you achieve your goal in this mortal realm death cannot touch you with fear" The man explained. The boy listened, but the man was done and dismissed the boy and began to cook the fish.

That night as the fire crackled under the cooking fish the boy was summoned back. In the dark of the room, the fire cast an eerie glow on his father who looked serious and thoughtful. As the fish cooked there was silence from both men, but suddenly the man spoke.

"For generations God has blessed our family with the strength to achieve our goals, but his eternal enemy has seen our blessings and has poisoned our men. My father, his father, his father and his father have all had the same poison running through our veins for generations and I too am tainted with the mark of the beast…" The boy listened intently as his father talked without looking at him. "…but my son, you do no not have that same dirt running in your veins. My son, you are different from the other men of this powerful family. Your goal in life is to be the savior, this world is not a world of peace, God will return to bring salvation, but you, my son are the one he chose to combat the evil that plagues this world…" The man paused and looked his son deep in the eyes. "…You will achieve great things my son…Heihachi Mishima"

Several Years Later…

With urgency the door flew opened and the two men walked out with speed and precision. The sun gleamed in on all sides of the hallway, which was comprised entirely of a series of square windows on all sides. The tap of the four shoes against the ground echoed through the hallway and even that sound was enough to keep anyway out of their way. Their power was evident and radiating out of their bodies. Behind them a smaller man in a suit rushed out the door himself and called out after the two men.

"Mishima!" The man yelled, but neither man turned or even acknowledged the shout. Instead the continued down the hallway. Almost as if by some psychic command the elevator opened just as the men came close enough to it, they both stepped in and the doors closed silently.

For a moment there was just silence, neither man said anything else as the elevator descended from the ninety-eighth floor. The out door elevator sparkled over the city as sun down beckoned to the sky and put a hazy, dream like state on the world.

"They think we're fools" The younger man finally spoke, the older man nodded and sighed.

"They were counting on our disapproval…" The older man spoke. "…they plan to use our stubbornness against us to the board." He continued.

"The board would never betray us" The young man said confidently, he nodded and felt reassured.

"Indeed, but they're counting on that too." The older man adjusted his tie and sighed to himself again.

"For what purpose?" the young man asked.

"Heihachi…" The older man spoke, exaggerating the downward inflection. "…Must you patronize your old father?" Jinpachi rubbed his eyes and smiled at his son.

"It would be a pleasure for you to admit that the Zaibastu needs a more forceful approach." Heihachi Mishima explained.

"A Military division is going too far, the Zaibastu is not a form of government" Jinpachi explained.

"I'm not suggesting you start your own nation father…" Heihachi explained. "…but a government contract for a private military company would allow the Zaibastu to grow and have security to defend itself from these villains." Heihachi explained.

"But in the processes the Zaibastu becomes feared and mired in legal messes, investigation after investigation. When one enters the world of guns and destruction its not long before those two properties are turned against him." Jinpachi stroked his beard and looked at his son, who he could see was not convinced.

"I understand you want the Zaibastu to be the model for the world, but cooperation like the Genetic Cooperation are moving up in the world and are willing to destroy any competition that comes in their way, and as of right now, we're the only group opposing them, it won't take them long attempt a hostile take-over." Heihachi explained. Strongly Jinpachi nodded and thought over his son's words.

"Of course, that's their end game…" Jinpachi admitted. "…but we are Mishima, their hostile take over would mean removing both of us." Jinpachi explained.

"'Only a Mishima can destroy a Mishima'" Heihachi recited. Jinpachi squeezed his son's shoulder.

"Precisely." Jinpachi agreed.

"But the Zaibastu could be damaged in something like that, so much so it might not recover." Heihachi went on.

"We have time, Genetic Cooperation won't make a move anytime soon, they still fear us." Jinpachi explained.

"I sense that too, they're waiting for an opportunity." Heihachi continued on.

"It would seem so, we'll have time to worry about it." Jinpachi suggested.

"Perhaps Jinrei would be of some help…" Heihachi said, his father turned his gazed to his son in actual surprise.

"I surmised that he could, we're meeting him now..." Jinpachi revealed. "…With insight so attuned you will make a perfect head of the Zaibastu." Jinpachi congratulated.

"One day."

When the two men exited the building they immediately went into a small black car, within moments it drove off. Inside the car was an older man seemingly around the same age as Jinpachi. When Jinpachi and Heihachi entered the man smiled and greeted them.

"Both father and son…" the man spoke. "…to what do I owe this pleasant surprise?" He flashed a grin, Jinpachi happily embraced the man.

"Jinrei…!" Jinpachi exclaimed at the man. "…It's always good to see you." Jinpachi continued.

Wang Jinrei was Jinpachi's oldest friend from childhood, as they grew up Jinpachi mastered the art of the Mishima style of Karate while Wang trained in the ways of Xing Yi Quan, the two became friendly rivals in their teen years and in their adult years Jinpachi served as an unofficial consultant to the Mishima Zaibastu for Jinpachi. Afterwards Wang traveled as a merchant with minimal success and as compensation Jinpachi created the Mishima Gardens, a large chunk of unaltered land and allowed Jinrei to live there knowing Wang's love of nature would be appeased there. Happily Wang accepted Jinpachi's request and became somewhat of a recluse in the gardens, growing vegetables and meditating. Occasionally however Jinpachi would call on Jinrei to do some investigative work, knowing his time as a merchant created an open door for information Jinpachi considered Jinrei as somewhat of a private investigator. Jinrei however didn't think of himself in that way and was always surprised when Jinpachi came to him for a shotty investigative attempt.

"…And young Heihachi Mishima, you're growing to be quite the young man." Jinrei complimented, Heihachi smiled and nodded. "…I heard you're now assistant chief in command of the ever powerful Mishima Zaibastu" Jinrei continued.

"Yes, I work directly under my father now." Heihachi confirmed, Jinrei smiled and tapped Heihachi on the leg.

"You look just like your father when he was your age, only more handsome." Jinrei chuckled. Jinpachi crossed his arms and smirked from the corner of his mouth.

"Jinrei you…" he shook his head. "…I need your help." Jinpachi said shortly.

"Of course you do, you wouldn't bring an old hermit out of his hut and into a limousine if you didn't need something from him." Jinrei commented.

"This Genetics Cooperation is trying to force the Zaibastu's hand…" Jinpachi began to explain. "…they want to make one company to create a powerful company to possibly go to the Japanese government and request a private contract, alone they aren't able to do it, but the Zaibastu has Mishima Heavy Industries which they want to use to create weapons of some sort to sell to the Japanese Government. Heihachi and I agree that we don't want any part of Genetics Cooperation, but something is amidst I sense a great deal of secrecy from them, possibly the idea of a hostile take-over-" Jinrei laughed out loud and slapped his hand on his knee flamboyantly.

"Against not one but _two_ Mishima?!"

"It's beyond foolish" Heihachi chimed in.

"Be that as it may…" Jinpachi restarted. "…Genetic Cooperation is planning something." Jinpachi Concluded.

"…and you want me to figure out what." Jinrei deduced. Heihachi nodded his head but then seemingly lost interest and began to look out the car window as the car approached the Mishima grounds.

"I was only hoping for you to keep your ears open about anything with your merchant friends that might know something." Jinpachi suggested, Jinrei shrugged his shoulders and leaned back.

"Sounds easy enough to me," Jinrei agreed. "…I'll see what I can do." Jinrei finished. Jinpachi smiled a toothy smile and slapped his own knee with a loud crack.

"Wonderful, now when we get back we'll have a drink!" Jinpachi shouted with glee.

"Bah, you old drunk…!" Jinrei waved Jinpachi off. "…'a drink' will become 'some more drinks' and then Heihachi and I will have to carry your large hide to your cot!" Jinrei spoke with decisiveness and clarity.

"Oh bah…" Jinpachi scoffed. "…It will be good exercise for my liver and better exercise for you and the boy!" Jinpachi boomed with laughter, Jinrei also joined in with laughter and nodded.

"Who could say no to that?!"

When the three men got back to Hon-Maru Heihachi went into the forest to train while the two older men drank and talked of women they had not seen in decades. As the night grew dark the men's laughter calmed and they began to talk of more serious things in life. Under the pale moonlight, drinking Jinpachi began to talk of his son.

"Jinrei, I have a remarkable son…" Jinpachi explained. Jinrei, trying to throw off some of his drunkenness stood up straight and nodded.

"I know, I've seen him." Jinrei agreed.

"The other day the two of us sparred for the first time in years…" Jinpachi now seemed to be reflecting to himself more than to his friend. "…Even though I was victorious, it was by the slightest margin. He has become more powerful, more focused and more cunning." Jinpachi continued.

"He's a Mishima" Jinrei suggested.

"Yes, but, he is different, my father was powerful, you remember…" Jinpachi went on.

"Oh yes, I remember." Jinrei laughed at some old memory he hadn't thought of in years about Jinpachi's father.

"…And I see that power within him, but more. He has the power of my father and a wisdom unmatched by any family member I can recall, he reads just as much as he trains." Jinpachi explained.

"A wise child is always a blessing." Jinrei nodded.

"Yes and he's missing this…" Jinpachi pulled the collar of his shirt down slightly and showed a mark that had been growing, Jinrei frowned at the mark and looked Jinpachi in the eye.

"It's getting worse?" Jinrei asked, Jinpachi nodded slowly.

"…much, my physical power is soaring, I feel younger, more agile." Jinpachi explained. The small candle between them flickered causing a momentary darkness, like reality blinking.

"These are all blessings Jinpachi, perhaps this 'curse' isn't as bad as you once thought." Jinrei suggested.

"No…" Jinpachi said sternly. "…Heihachi was too young to remember, but I remember what happened to my father," Jinpachi's eyes unfocused as he went into a memory. "He became more and more powerful as time went on, and over time he went insane he began to hate everything until eventually-" Jinpachi's voice began to stagger.

"I know Jinpachi…" Jinrei interrupted. "…but you're stronger than he was, he didn't know what it was, you do. You've shown the ability to suppress it, even control it." Jinrei suggested further, but Jinpachi shook his head and smiled.

"You always gave me too much credit Jinrei…" Jinpachi took a sip of his drink. "…I can hear it in my mind now, its faint, but each dying day it gets louder," Jinpachi tapped his finger on the wooden table. "I'm not sure what's going to happen to me, but Heihachi…" Jinpachi paused thinking of his son. "…He doesn't have this in him," he pointed to his chest vigorously. "God sent him to me, he's the one who will end this contaminant"

"How do you know he doesn't have it?" Jinrei asked, Jinpachi looked to the sky.

"Before he was completely lost, he explained to me how it worked…" Jinpachi delved. "…It's all one being, just separated, I can sense it as if it were my own self, because in ways it is. And when Heihachi was born I couldn't sense it, to this day I haven't had the slightest clue in his entire life that this…devil gene is within him." Jinpachi explained.

"That is odd," Jinrei suggested. "…what do you think it all means?" he asked.

"It means that when I die, Heihachi will be the last of the Mishima's and the curse of this bloodline will end, and when that happens, the demon will be lost." Jinpachi explained.

"That's not what you really think…" Jinrei stated. "…I've known you long enough to know when you're denying something." Jinpachi sighed.

"When I lose control of this, Heihachi is the only hope for destroying me, and his power is growing and I feel assured he will be able to." Jinpachi explained.

"Your son loves you." Jinrei stated. "…It will be a struggle for him to simply hurt you."

"I know, I'm teaching him still." Jinpachi acknowledged.

"That day is far off." Jinrei explained and he took a long swig of his drink. "…hell if you're this drunk when it happens maybe I'll stand a chance against you!" Jinrei happily exclaimed. Jinpachi, taking a sip of his drink, loudly laughed and slapped his hand on the table breaking off a large portion of it. The two men both stopped laughing to look at the damage, then at each other and let out another loud howl of laughter.

In the following weeks Heihachi began to assimilate more into Jinpachi's role, at meetings he became more vocal while his father listened carefully and tried to play a supporting role to his son. Slowly Heihachi began to show everyone that he was ready to lead the Mishima Zaibastu in the place of his father, the company took time and opened up a main office in downtown Japan and Heihachi was in charge of overseeing business in the office. Jinpachi still was the head of the company dealing with the ever growing pressures of Genetics Cooperation and planning the commencement of another division of the Zaibastu. As time went on Wang Jinrei gained small amounts of knowledge on Genetics Cooperation's plans for the Mishimas. Heihachi continued his training now in the knowledge and focus phase, Jinpachi stressed that knowledge was just as important as physical strength in combat, meditation and reading were the keys to understanding life's complexities and to understand that was to understand your opponent. Psychology, Spirituality and Criminology were among the most important ideas to study, Heihachi would spend sixteen hours a day reading or meditating non-stop. Learning to focus and mentally preparing oneself for combat in different fashions was the height of preparation. When not focusing on his studies Heihachi worked directly in the Japan office of the Mishima Zaibastu, maintaining a fresh office was a hard job on its own but, he was in charge.

Heihachi entered the building on a cool fall day and took the elevator to the top floor, his personal office. When he exited the elevator he was surprised to see a young woman standing behind a desk waiting for him. He looked at her for a long moment and took a deep breath to speak.

"Hello Mr. Mishima, my name is Kazume. I'm your new personal secretary." The woman spoke before Heihachi could speak, hearing this he nodded and readjusted his thoughts.

"Kazume you say…?" Heihachi asked, the woman nodded. "…That's a very pretty name." Heihachi finished. The woman seemed taken aback by this comment and began to blush.

"Thank You." she responded, Heihachi briefly smiled.

"What happened to Tashi?" Heihachi asked.

"She has been moved to archival work." Kazume answered quickly. Heihachi nodded and began to walk into his office.

"Your first bit of work can be to get the Financial Group on the phone, some of the numbers for last quarter are strangely off." Heihachi ordered, Kazume nodded.

"Yes Mr. Mishima" she said as she went behind the desk. Heihachi walked by her took of his jacket and went into his office to work.

The same routine followed for months, and Heihachi sorted out details for the company as his father worried about keeping the company afloat. His training became more intense, physically he began to test himself, he worked all day and would train well into the night and next day. Within months he was working on a thirty six hour day training most of the time and dealing with the Zaibastu the rest of the time, Jinpachi worked less and spent more time meditating at home, his lack of being seen began to spark rumors of sickness, Heihachi training kept him away from his father, though he could sense something was wrong with his father. Taking a rare break from training Heihachi went back to Hon-Maru to visit his father.

He found Jinpachi sitting over a fire smoking a large pipe, something his father did only when in a deep concentration about something serious, Heihachi could recall as a child seeing Jinpachi smoking the same pipe after returning from work and planning out the next course for the Zaibastu. The look in his eyes was vacant, his soul was floating in some other realm looking for answers to something that troubled him. Next to the fire Heihachi knelt on his knees and began to meditate with his father. It was several minutes before Jinpachi came back into himself and paid attention to his meditating son, he didn't speak initially but, after a few minutes began to speak.

"My son…" Jinpachi began. "…I have regressed." Heihachi took a deep breath and sighed silently. He feared this day, the day his father would admit he was losing himself to the poison.

"I know." Heihachi simply answered. Jinpachi lifted the pipe and smoked it with a long drag.

"it was brief but, strong…" Jinpachi raised his hand to his son. "…It knows you are it's enemy." Jinpachi explained.

"I'm not strong enough yet." Heihachi admitted.

"Indeed, but you are getting there…." Jinpachi put his massive hand on Heihachi's shoulder and squeezed. "…and I am still able to control it, a small lapse is not enough to take control of me." Jinpachi explained.

"You wish to ask something of me…" Heihachi suddenly said, Jinpachi looked his son in the eye and smiled.

"Your insight is growing, you are able to sense things clearly." Jinpachi chuckled.

"I have been training." Heihachi simply stated.

"Indeed…" Jinpachi became serious. "…I wish to ask you to take more control of the Zaibastu." Jinpachi explained.

"How so…?" Heihachi asked.

"Genetic cooperation is trying to convince the board that I'm inept, they need to know that even if they go through me, the Zaibastu will not fall. They need to see that Mishima blood is iron clad." Jinpachi went on.

"What can I do?" Heihachi continued to ask.

"I want you to do what you feel is right, Genetic Cooperation has scheduled another meeting, Jinrei has informed me that they plan to make a move against me, claiming that I'm not capable of controlling the Zaibastu and that a merger would be best for everyone. I want you to go to them and do whatever you feel is right." Jinpachi explained.

"Does this mean I'm the head of the Zaibastu?" Heihachi asked, Jinpachi looked up surprised and let out a loud bellow of laughter.

"If only it were that simple, my young son!" Jinpachi exclaimed.

"You're baiting them." Heihachi's thoughts fell out of his mouth, he could sense the deception in his father and could almost make out a plan.

"I've taught you well…" Jinpachi nodded. "…They think I'm the weak link in this company, so we'll falsely advance their plans. With me seemingly out of the picture they will make their move on you and we will finally reveal Genetic Cooperation's plans." Jinpachi explained.

"We have to make them think the bait is most important." Heihachi recited the advice his father gave him years ago.

"Exactly," Jinpachi agreed. "…But to do this I must stay in the shadows, and I put my trust into you, my son. Your meeting with the executives of Genetic Cooperation will reveal things to you and you will then make the choice on how to go about dealing with them." Jinpachi elaborated.

"What if I am not sure on what to do?" Heihachi asked.

"You are a Mishima, your soul will know what to do." Jinpachi reassured him. Heihachi seemed apprehensive.

"When is this meeting with Genetic Cooperation, I need time to think about what to do." Heihachi explained.

"You have plenty of time," Jinpachi assured Heihachi. "…the meeting isn't until ten tomorrow." Jinpachi stood.

"Tomorrow?!" Heihachi exclaimed in shock. Jinpachi nodded.

"Jinrei has found that they are snooping around some of our people," Jinpachi relayed. "…we need to advance their plan to get a sense of what it is they plan to use against us." Jinpachi explained.

"I have not slept in two days, I'm not confident in my ability to sit in a board room with these people." Heihachi explained, Jinpachi nodded.

"Rest is something that even a warrior must use," He spoke thunderously. "…which is why you will stay here tonight and rest. Tomorrow I will wake you with time to do some studies and prepare for your meeting." Jinpachi ordered, not entirely pleased Heihachi nodded and went to his quarters. Sleep came to him quickly as he was more tired than he had initially realized, he thought about the next day and what Genetic cooperation would reveal to him.

The next day it was Wang Jinrei who woke Heihachi and a lot later than Heihachi thought he'd be woken up. Jinrei never seemed hurried or rushed, he woke Heihachi slowly and calmly explained that if he didn't move quickly he would certainly be late for the meeting. Heihachi was woke quickly and ready to leave in minutes, Wang explained he would be riding with Heihachi to the offices so that he may try to identify who in the Zaibastu was aiding Genetic Cooperation.

"I'm not supposed to tell you this but," Jinrei began. "…Your father specifically asked me to wake you up late." Wang revealed. Heihachi seemed marginally interested, focused more on the meeting.

"Is that so?" Heihachi asked while re-tying his tie. Jinrei nodded and watched Heihachi's face.

"He also was adamant about you not seeing him at all this morning" Jinrei added on. Heihachi nodded.

"The people at Genetic Cooperation think my father is sick…" Heihachi began to explain. "…by avoiding me there is no unconscious focus on seeing him today thusly, there isn't anything in my being that can reveal he is in fact well." Heihachi explained, Jinrei nodded.

"What your father would call, 'Plausible deniability'" Jinrei explained. Heihachi smirked.

"He's mention this concept to you?" Heihachi asked. Jinrei laughed.

"Not really," Jinrei shrugged. "…I taught it to him when he was young"

When they arrived at the office building Jinrei explained that he wasn't going to follow Heihachi to the meeting, Jinpachi and He suspected a spy in the Zaibastu and if the Genetic Cooperation bosses were here then there was a large chance that the spy was lurking around. Jinrei was used to finding people who didn't want to be found, his father was a private detective for the Hong Kong police force and a lot of his skills rubbed off on his son. Heihachi thanked Jinrei for all his help and like his father offered him a job at the Zaibastu.

"Oh no thank you," Jinrei laughed. "…I enjoy doing nothing, I'll leave the hard life to the Mishimas" Jinrei added and then walked off into the distance.

Heihachi walked into the building and took the elevator to the top floor, which was formerly a pent house and braced himself for the meeting. When the elevator doors reopened Kazume was standing waiting for him.

"Good morning Kazume" Heihachi greeted, Kazume gave a polite bow and handed over a folder to Heihachi.

"Good morning Mr. Mishima…" She began. "…the board has already assembled and the men from Genetic Cooperation have already arrived, they're waiting in the waiting room and the board is waiting in the conference room." Kazume explained. Heihachi looked at his watch, he was early by ten minutes.

"The meeting is scheduled for ten right?" Heihachi asked.

"Yes, Mr. Mishima." She answered.

"Then the meeting doesn't start until ten, page the conference room and tell them I'm displeased with their appeasement to Genetic Cooperation." Heihachi quickly commanded, Kazume nodded.

"Is your father going to be late?" Kazume asked. Heihachi shook his head briskly.

"No, he's not coming," Heihachi revealed. "…and don't let the board know, I rather see their faces." Kazume nodded and went behind the desk, Heihachi walked past her into his office.

Inside he sat down behind his own desk and closed his eyes, meditation was fairly new to him but, he had found solace in its deepness. The more he did it the further down into this ethereal world he went and understood more of life's complexities. When he meditated he could see so many things he never knew existed, it was the meditating that showed that his father was beginning to sway in his fight against his poison. Heihachi knew that Jinpachi was strong but, this power seemed to be creeping up slowly but, steadily to the surface. Heihachi wasn't sure how much longer his father had or what that meant, Heihachi had never met his grandfather but, he knew than Jinpachi was forced to kill him because he lost control. In his meditation he tried to understand what this cursed blood really was, what was it's power and it's appeal, how could he expect overcome this thing if he didn't even know what it was.

Before Heihachi could think anymore he knew it was time to go into the meeting and do what had to be done, he rose from his chair, exited his office, passed Kazume and entered the conference room.

Sitting at the table were a group of familiar people, most of them were from the Zaibastu angry board members hoping to move the company forward in a new direction. Old men with too much money and too much time, Heihachi knew that this companies money was what their lives centered around he knew they didn't understand what the company was, that it was the Mishima legacy, that it had been built from nothing and crafted by powerful Mishima men into the most viable company in the world. Heihachi knew they didn't understand that this company was more than Genetic cooperation's greedy needs. The Mishima Zaibastu was built to be powerful and just and Genetic cooperation was mired in shadows and doubt. The other men were Genetic cooperation's lap dogs, sent to grovel at Jinpachi's feet and attempt to create a 'bond' between the two companies. Heihachi stood strong in the conference room but, the men looked passed him expecting to see Jinpachi walk in, confidently Heihachi sat at the head of the table and addressed the men.

"I'm glad you could all be here..." Heihachi began, the man nodded and slightly became more relaxed. "…My father has left me in charge of this branch of the Zaibastu and will not be attending this meeting. All of the decisions that will be made today will be of my doing." Heihachi explained; both the Genetic cooperation and the Zaibastu members shifted uneasily in their chairs to the new information that Jinpachi wasn't going to be there.

"Has your father given up the Zaibastu to you Heihachi?" one of the Mishima board members asked. Heihachi eyes focused directly to his and did not falter.

"No," Heihachi began. "…but he has left me in charge of more matters in an attempt to ease the transition the Zaibastu moving into my control." Heihachi embellished, the board members shifted more and the their eyes moved from Heihachi's gaze, a small silence punctuated the room.

"Heihachi, all this time we've been working with you and your father to try and make a deal to merge our two companies and approach the Japanese government for an independent contract," one of the Genetic cooperation personnel spoke. Heihachi recognized him, Tatsumi Hiragi, he was a smart young man whom started off only taking notes in the meetings with Jinpachi but, over time had grown in position and now appeared to be a member of Genetic Cooperation's board. "…it seems most distracting to me to _now_ have to deal with this shift. Perhaps after our deal was done I would feel more at ease with a shift in the company but, as of now I would be more comfortable if Jinpachi Mishima was here to discuss matters we've been dealing with for years now." Hiragi explained, men on both sides of the table nodded in agreement some even lightly expressing their satisfaction with Hiragi's statement verbally.

"That is unfortunate." Heihachi spoke devoid of any empathy, he looked Hiragi in the eye as well. "…my father has expressed his want for me to be more proactive in this companies development and that's the end of that discussion." Heihachi dismissed, the men at the table suddenly seemed more nervous. Heihachi's statements were throwing them off a new plan of action was being concocted as they sat their in front of the young Mishima.

"Well…" Another Genetic cooperation member spoke. "…let's move on to discussions. We left off last time with the formation of a new company, one that would focus on Genetic cooperation's cutting edge Genetic manipulation work and the Mishima Financial Empire's ability to fund military projects and work with the Japanese government. Our work together will have us working directly with the Japanese government as a independent military facility. Within one decade the entire Japanese defense force will be dependant on our biological and robotic soldiers, ensuring the success and continued development of these two companies together"

"The Japanese government isn't enthusiastic about a financial company suddenly becoming a military arms or privately contracted army. They've already expressed their concern with our dealings with the Russians and have already vowed to come down like a hammer on us if we fund another countries military weapons," A Mishima board executive interjected. "The last thing we need is for the Japanese government to not be on our side." He finished, Heihachi's attention was momentarily broken, something broke his concentration. Heihachi turned and saw Kazume was standing in the room taking notes on the meeting, it was just then he noticed something about her that he hadn't consciously noticed before…

"We understand your concerns about the Japanese Government but, Genetic cooperation has a good relationship with the Japanese government and if we merged and offered our services exclusively to the Japanese government we will have their trust." Hiragi explained, Heihachi was suddenly bought back to the meeting by Hiragi's words. Hiragi was staring deeply in Heihachi's eyes there most certainly a contempt between the two of them.

"Exclusiveness to the Japanese Government might not be a sensible aspiration." A Mishima executive explained. The Mishima executives nodded in agreement.

"There's little chance that the Japanese Government will be able to continue to support of financial wants and or needs of our company if we decide to go into contracts with them, we'd almost would have to go to other countries, The Russians have already showed interest in a defense program we've created, it would be a mistake to not take them up on their offer because we promised this Government exclusiveness." Another Mishima executive explained. It was then Heihachi suddenly sensed something he hadn't before. There was a nervousness in the air surrounding the Genetic cooperation members, it came with the mention of the defense program. Heihachi tried to quickly concentrate and come to clarity on this sudden change in mood but, it was not coming quickly enough.

"This may be true but, we can cross that bridge when come to it. For now a government contract would propel out companies into the stratosphere, In a matter of years, together, we could be the most powerful company in the world." Hiragi explained, the Mishima executives seemed to buy this theory.

"This doesn't solve the problem of our shareholders who feel a merging will topple over both companies potentially." A Mishima executive chimed in, Hiragi nodded and began to open his mouth to talk but, Heihachi interrupted.

"I think I have the solution to that problem." Heihachi interjected, everyone at the table turned to face him.

"Go on Heihachi." A Mishima executive spoke, Heihachi felt anger welling up inside of him. They refused to call him Mr. Mishima, that was his father, the same amount of respect wasn't being bestowed upon him but, Heihachi knew one day that would respect him.

"It's quite simple," Heihachi began. "…to avoid the issue of scaring our shareholders out of their money _and _deal with the Japanese government, this company must take drastic measures and be unwavering it's intent and actions." Heihachi began, he turned slightly to Kazume making notes and then back to the men.

"What are you supposing Heihachi?" Hiragi asked. Whatever restraint Heihachi had left about his choice had vanished; he knew in his soul this was the right choice to make.

"It's simple…" Heihachi began. "…from this day forward the Mishima Zaibastu will no longer do _any_ business with Genetic cooperation." Heihachi finished, in a flurry of emotions men on both sides of the table loudly exclaimed their opinions verbally.

"Mishima…!" A Zaibastu executive blurted out. "…what place do you have to anger our guest this way!?"

"My father left me in charge of this company and I have made my choice." Heihachi asserted, Hiragi eyed Heihachi quietly, angrily.

"You must have the approval of the board to make a decision like this…!" another board member yelled before turning to the Genetic cooperation members. "…and we most certainly don't feel this way!"

"Actually I do not need the approval of the board, this decision is coming from the highest authority." Heihachi reaffirmed.

"Your _father_ is the highest authority, not you boy!" a Genetic Cooperation member leaned over the table to yell.

"You will find that my father will back up every decision I've made today, including the executive order to limit Mishima board members access to sensitive material, you know all work directly under my father and myself." Heihachi explained, the Zaibastu board members were furious, some threw their fist on the table, others stood up out of their seats in protest.

"Have you lost your mind Heihachi, the board is who made you as powerful as you are now, we trusted you, we empowered you and we supported you and you're limiting our say in the company!?"

"Your obvious devotion to this sad company…" Heihachi gestured to the Genetic cooperation members. "…has proven to me that money and greed are more important than your devotion for this company, until I know you can be trusted you will not make a move without my approval." Heihachi decreed, now all the Zaibastu board members were standing and in a fury, most yelled idly, some vowed to overturn this decision, the genetic cooperation members began to stand as well, more calmly.

"Well, Mr. Mishima we will certainly look into your authority and decide where to go, if anywhere, with this company." A Genetic cooperation member spoke, he stood and began to collect his papers.

"Yes, until that time you are not welcomed in this building and must leave immediately, if you should hesitate security will show you the way of haste." Heihachi stood as the Genetic cooperation members began to file out of the room past him, Hiragi was third of the six people to leave, their eyes briefly met but, there were no words. After them the Zaibastu members began to left, most of them walked by with angry grunts but, the last walked to Heihachi's ear and spoke.

"You will never be the great man your father was." He said before walking out of the room. For a moment the words hung there in Heihachi's ear, they repeated in various degrees of severity and volume, Heihachi stood motionless and quiet for several minutes, thinking about what had just occurred. Breaking the silence and stillness was Kazume who walked over to him quietly.

"Mr. Mishima?" She asked politely; it was then Heihachi first realized she was probably the same age as he was, it was almost as if he hadn't seen her before.

"Yes Kazume?" Heihachi responded quietly, coming to sitting in his chair, slumping slightly.

"I think…" she paused, Heihachi sensed a nervousness in her. "…I think you made the right choice." She said quietly, almost as if she didn't want him to hear.

"Oh…?" Heihachi spoke turning his head towards her, he felt a slight elation, it was as if she knew exactly what he wanted to hear.

"I know I just answer the phones and organize papers but, I hear and read a lot and I think Genetic cooperation had adverse plans for this company and the board doesn't seem to care about maintaining the company but, instead getting as much out of it now." She spoke very quickly and with more nervousness. Heihachi stood, the move felt slightly threatening, even to him. He looked Kazume in the eyes, she looked terrified.

"Kazume…" Heihachi began; the woman already looked crushed and crestfallen, her eyes sunk into her face and her brow split into slopes showing great disapproval.

She was a beautiful girl.

"…Thank you." Heihachi finished, he walked by her and as he passed placed his hand on her shoulder and smiled, he felt her whole body go rigid as if bracing for some kind of attack but, he also could sense a great amount of elation in her, and in that he felt elated as well.


	2. 27 to 26 Years Before Tekken I

Some time later…

"WHAT…?!" the thunderous voice boomed with fury, the entire earth shook, the animals in the trees scurried, the clouds in the sky trembled. The wood in the cabin shook and the dirty on the ground lifted slightly. The monstrous figure of Jinpachi Mishima stood tensed and seemingly poised for an explosion, the veins on his muscles and face bulged like imprints of rage trying to escape the flesh. The sheer aura of power emanating from Jinpachi seemed to push the air away from his body, a slight electricity in the air sparked and nipped at the hairs on Heihachi Mishima's body, who stood with his face looking at the floor like a young child being scolded. Despite the undeniably powerful fury of his father pushing ever closer to his body Heihachi did not move or back down, instead he stood firm and allowed his father to yell. The natural smell of the trees and the grass filled the room they were in, the fire crackled lightly and the smell of cinder merged with them creating a smell Heihachi hadn't smelled since he was a boy. The smell took him back there, being a child training under his father, being in awe of his power. The teachings, the lessons he learned from his father watching Jinrei and listening to his stories crime syndicates and vicious gangs and then also of stories of he and Jinpachi's follies as young men growing up as friends and friendly rivals. Heihachi remembered all the stories his father told him, the wise ones, the ones of fear, the ones of humor and the one of his family. How the Mishima bloodline was the greatest blessing in the world and also still very cursed, he knew his father was almost fearless and the only thing he really feared was the thing inside of him which he could not control, and when the wind blew the memories flooded him and guilt filled his mind as he stood in front of his father. Heihachi remembered his mother she was a beautiful woman but, she was troubled, Jinpachi tried to console her of her fears but, one day they became too prominent and she took her own life. For years Heihachi blamed himself, because her fear came from him, she was scared of her son more than anything and no matter how much Jinpachi tried to convince her that Heihachi wasn't something to fear she could never fully trust his word because of the blood.

Because of the curse.

"…Heihachi you _know_ what this means, I've spent all my life warning you against this!" Jinpachi's anger seemed to slip into massive disappointment, his eyes searched his son's body looking for some answers in his son's movements.

"I can only apologize to you master." Heihachi finally spoke meekly.

"NO…!" Jinpachi grabbed his son by the arms and shook him, Heihachi's face came to meet his fathers. "…I am your _father_, not your master, I am upset because I _fear_ for you my son!" Jinpachi exclaimed, for a moment they stood there Jinpachi grabbing him face to face, Jinpachi released him and did something he had never done before, he turned away from his son. This hit Heihachi the worse, his father always told him not to turn away from anyone, it showed fear and disappointment, Heihachi had never physically seen his father fear.

"Father…" Heihachi could not speak loudly, his throat was dry, his hands were shaking. "…I don't want to disappoint you." Heihachi added, Jinpachi turned his face to look over his shoulder at his son.

"When I took this company, I didn't think about it being successful…" Jinpachi started. "…In fact when I took this company I didn't even care about it, as I grew older I began to learn more about people and craft the company around their actions. Through experience I learned what people wanted and expected of this company business became easier to follow, my mind became clear and my physical power began to merge with my knowledge and wisdom. Eventually I became so confident in myself that the company became a non-issue," Jinpachi explained, Heihachi stood there unmoving just listening silently taking in the words. "But, when you were born I wasn't sure how to approach you. I wanted to be as best as I could to protect my son. I wanted you to grow and look at me and see a man you would always respect, the company I took over became nothing to me, only a tool to show you that I loved you more than any of it. I wanted to make this company to be so powerful so that when I gave it to you you would know this was the most supreme gift anyone would ever give you. When I pass I want you to look at the Zaibatsu and see what good was left of your father," Jinpachi continued.

"Father…" Heihachi began

"This is why I could never be disappointed with you, you have turned to a much greater man than I could have ever been. But what you're telling me now, it makes me fear for you my son. This could destroy you." Jinpachi concluded.

"I understand your concern father but," Heihachi felt nervous his entire body was starting to shake. "I've already made my decision." He sighed.

"I know, this is why I'm not trying to convince you otherwise, you are a strong man and as much as I like to think that I have some of my fatherly control over you I know in the end you will do what your soul guides you to." Jinpachi revealed.

"I want you to understand why I am doing this." Heihachi started, he walked over to his father and placed his hand on his shoulder, Jinpachi smiled and put his massive hand on Heihachi's.

"My son…" he spoke.

"I want you to understand that I love her father." Heihachi spoke softly.

"But what if…" Jinpachi began.

"We've discussed having a child, she wants one but, we are willing to adopt. I won't let the cursed bloodline to continue." Heihachi reassured.

"You cannot train someone to be a Mishima." Jinpachi doubted.

"With the wisdom you have given me, I know my adopted son will be strong like you. He will be so powerful no person would doubt he's a Mishima!" Heihachi explained, Jinpachi looked him in the eye, he could see Heihachi believed what he was saying and in that Jinpachi trusted.

"You are my son…" Jinpachi began. "…and I trust you."

The two men finally faced one another and embraced in a hug, Heihachi felt fulfilled, the approval of his father was the only thing that mattered, with that he felt ready to take on the future.

In the following months Heihachi moved out of Hon-Maru and into a simple but, comfortable living space in the city with Kazume. During the weeks he worked at the cooperate headquarters and weekends visited his father and dove into the wealth of books in the Mishima library to continue his study and upkeep his training. Kazume ceased to work at the Zaibatsu and stayed home planning the wedding with her friends and looking for a suitable and reputable adoption agency to find a son. Heihachi still worked under his father and the entire board of the Zaibatsu was fired and recreated with people Heihachi felt he could trust, the Zaibatsu became involved in building schools and housing for children and less fortunate people, that boosted the popularity of the Zaibatsu creating a frenzy of interest in the Zaibatsu, stocks flew and the company grew more powerful than ever. The Japanese government became heavily involved in supporting the Zaibatsu in an effort to make itself look good. Jinpachi became more reclusive leading to rumors that Heihachi was going to soon take over the Zaibatsu. Despite the growth in the Zaibatsu more enemies were coming out against the Mishimas. The criminals of the underworld of Japan and China, including the Yakuza, were not pleased with the new anti-crime equipment the Zaibatsu had funded for each company, other financial cooperation began to feel a monopoly was taking hold of their business, within months one couldn't walk down the streets of Japan or China without seeing a product paid for, made by or conceived by the Zaibatsu. Heihachi didn't hide the fact that he was not an ally to crime at all, he insisted that the Zaibatsu go after crime as strong as possible he vowed that the underworld would be flipped to the top and burn by the light of justice. Jinrei served as an unofficial liaison to the Chinese police and funded them with the money they needed to combat the growing crime and violence in their country, though Heihachi was equally vocal about not being a fan of the way the Chinese ran their country.

With such a vocal and unapologetic spokesperson the Zaibatsu quickly became the target of any adverse point of views. Genetic Cooperation secretly spearheaded the rally against the Zaibatsu calling to arms a myriad of companies to attempt to gain some ground against the Mishimas but, none were successful. The criminal underground however, had a different approach to dealing with the Mishima, a recent rash of assassination attempts against board members became more and more violent as time went on, though strangely none were successful. This series of failures led Heihachi to assume that the attempts were failed on purpose, a fear tactic he had seen before, it served as a warning and at the end of the chain of attempts would be Heihachi's turn and they would do anything to be successful on their final endeavor. Heihachi however was not concerned about any of it, an attempt on his life was just an opportunity to put his training to use in a non-simulated event, Heihachi had powerful enemies but, he was a more than powerful man. Living in the city did make it easier to find Heihachi, Hon-Maru was a large forest that only people who lived their knew how to navigate, living in downtown made him a popular sight to see when he left for work everyday. Some people called it stupid of Heihachi to be so conspicuous, others insisted it was a testament to his confidence and power but, the truth was that it was the simplest way to live for Heihachi. The only issue Heihachi ever had about his living situation was Kazume who was now, unwillingly, becoming a famous face as well. Unbeknownst to her Heihachi had created a small body guard force to look over Kazume, since hw as away a lot of the times he wanted to ensure her protection. Bringing her with him on trips wasn't an option either considering the probability of an attack on his life was high, he couldn't possibly put her close to that kind of situation for several reasons.

Wang Jinrei now accompanied Heihachi on many of his business meetings, he served as somewhat as a head of security, under the request of Jinpachi Mishima and in some respects Heihachi as well. Jinrei knew there was a lot of threats appearing against Heihachi and it worried him as well, Wang saw Heihachi as someone who could steer the Zaibatsu to a higher level than even Jinpachi plus, the scourge of the underworld were the people trying to destroy Heihachi and Jinrei saw this as Heihachi doing something right. Usually Jinrei traveled well behind Heihachi in order to keep his place in the process a secret however, on his trip to Jinrei's native China Wang followed closely.

The trip was an important one, Heihachi was to go on behalf of the Zaibatsu and pledge his support for the various Chinese Police forces both in a press conference and in a meeting where he was going to pledge more money to China's interior defense fund. The Japanese Government though was not happy with Heihachi's seemingly unending support of their neighbors. The Japanese government put stress on the Zaibatsu to offer an equal amount of support to its interior defense but, Heihachi resisted the forcefulness of the Japanese he knew the current rate of corruption was immense. The Yakuza ran eighty Seventy percent of 'legitimate' companies in Japan and the Government had been strong armed into not doing anything about it. The money was better off giving his money to the Chinese who were at least attempting to combat the criminals.

The Japanese and Chinese Mafia's were Heihachi's primary concern, twice the Japanese mafia:, the Yakuza, had tried to infiltrate the Zaibatsu and both times had created enough damage to have to reevaluate the Mishima's standings in Japan. The Chinese Mafia had a different way of going about things, they instead destroyed expensive equipment in Mishima warehouses and factories however, this worked to the Zaibatsu's advantage considering most of the materials made in China by the Zaibatsu were convenience items used heavily by the Chinese people. The destruction of these items caused the Chinese people to verbally revolt against the Chinese Mafia and subsequently force the Chinese Police Force into action. This didn't mean he didn't get some resistance from the Chinese government some politicians didn't understand why Heihachi ran most of his business in China, the Triads were enough to deal with in China but, now the Yakuza were following Heihachi from Japan to China and getting into local feuds with one another; even worse Heihachi refused to address this issue, and sometimes seemed to encourage this type of violence. He insisted that with their guns turned on each other people were safer and was even video taped saying: "Let the animals kill each other, then it's God's problem to sort them out". Even so the bad press and some politicians weren't enough to keep Heihachi from doing business in China.

The car began to slow and Heihachi sighed out loud, Jinrei looked at the young Mishima, for someone just twenty-four years old he looked older. His full head of black hair stood up on his head, he had a moustache growing in and his face was made of stone, a chiseled look of seriousness was there, he looked like his father did at twenty-four.

"What's wrong Heihachi?" Jinrei asked looking him in the eye, Heihachi gave a weak smile and then out the window.

"It's nothing Jinrei," Heihachi began. "…I'm not the biggest fan of just giving our money away." Heihachi explained, Jinrei nodded.

"It's going to a good cause," Wang stated but, then he really focused in on Heihachi, something the Mishima could sense and felt the seriousness of his presence. "…But what is the real reason for your anxiety, young one?" Jinrei added, Heihachi sighed again and looked at the old man.

"Something isn't right." Heihachi stated tersely, Jinrei nodded.

"With?" He asked, Heihachi closed his eyes and concentrated deeply.

"I don't know," Heihachi said after a long moment. The world collapsed around him, his senses took control, the ethereal world began to materialize. He could sense emotions, feelings of doubt, deception, anger and hate, the world became a massive ball of energy that he could feel and understand, yet still he couldn't quite grasp this feeling. "…It's close, and its direct but, it is hidden. Someone conspires against me but, deeply, methodically it is pure in its intent to stop me, yet its shrouded in doubt and deception." Heihachi opened his eyes and Wang Jinrei was still watching him.

"Indeed," the old man spoke. "…I've felt it too, something is of grave concern." The car stopped and the driver explained they had reached their destination.

"It concerns me that I cannot pinpoint it." Heihachi expressed, Jinrei nodded.

"Don't feel too powerless, I can't either and I've had more than twice the time to tune my senses. What we're dealing with is a serious problem. Just remain focused and it will narrow to a definite answer." Jinrei smiled at the young man and tapped his knee lightly. Both men exited the car into the bright sun, there they stood under a large glass building standing next to a beautiful Chinese bay of sparkling water and green topped mountains on the horizon.

"Wow, the Zaibatsu needs to get a view like this…" Heihachi marveled. "…thanks Jinrei." He added at the end. Wang smiled a toothy grin, Heihachi smiled he always looked senile when he smiled that way but, his mind was only rivaled by Jinpachi in information and technique.

"I do what I can," Jinrei simply answered as he began to walk away, Heihachi showed confusion. "…I'm going to give a look around." Jinrei explained.

"What for?" Heihachi asked.

"You know, Curiosity." Jinrei ended and with that he walked away.

Alone now Heihachi went to the entrance of the building where he was met by Chinese executives. They all gave him a warm, if not overly warm, welcome and ushered him into the building. His new assistant was man named Hiyate, a nice loyal young man who kept up with Heihachi, he brought all his papers and documents and explained to Heihachi the order of the procedures again.

"After this meeting you're going to go down to the Police and do some photo ops with them and sign a paper pledging the Zaibatsu's support to the Chinese Police force against crime," Hiyate explained as they entered the elevator. "…they've asked that you don't mention the Yakuza or the Triads in your short speech," Heihachi made a face of disapproval but, before he could voice anything Hiyate continued. "…I know, I know but, they have a lot on their hands right now, the added stress of being pressured by the Triads and or the Yakuza won't help the collective cause," Hiyate compromised, Heihachi nodded in agreement but, stayed quiet to let Hiyate continue explaining. "After that you have a short drive downtown to, hopefully, come to an agreement to build a office building in Hong Kong, we'll have to be careful though, the Triads are notorious in Hong Kong so there will be resistance," The elevator doors opened and they both walked out, Hiyate continued: "Then you'll go a little more downtown to the big speech which will be on all major News Stations Mr. Mishima, so please don't say anything compromising" Heihachi laughed.

"Did my Father tell you to say that?" he asked.

"He called me very early this morning to ensure I would deliver that message to you sometime before the speech." Hiyate explained, Heihachi though, suddenly stopped walking. "..Is there something wrong Mr. Mishima? Hiyate asked but, Heihachi stood silent he could sense the urgency in the air, his eyes were transfixed on the sun through the glass wall at the other end of the hallway. This was different than what he felt with Jinrei though, this had no deception, It was clear and immediate but, he could again, pinpoint exactly what was happening.

Just as he realized what was happening his whole body was thrown off the floor and flung into a far wall, the pain shot through his body and the confusion went through his mind quickly. It wasn't until he was attempting to get up did he even notice the explosion go off shattering the entire glass wall, sending bits of glass and fire and concrete flying through the air, a large piece of concrete slammed right into Heihachi chest and darkness took over.

Outside in the sun Jinrei walked quickly, but not uncharacteristically so, back to the entrance of the building, Two speedboats came to the shore of the building and three men jumped off the boats towards the building, all three holding guns rushing towards the building. For the first time in years Jinrei ran, he ran towards the lead man and with expert precision aimed a kick to his gun sending it flying into the air. The man, surprised, threw a punch which landed far away from Jinrei who took the flying fist and twisted it like a knot, and tossed the man over his shoulder to the ground. The man in now beginning to come off his surprise, kicked in an attempt to sweep Wang off his feet but, the kick failed and Jinrei's foot came down coldly on the man's chest. Air exited his body in a loud wheeze and Jinrei continued into the building. The hallways were filled with smoke and ash and Jinrei had to focus to guide his way through it, cement and glass was everywhere, the staircase was a twisted maze of a puzzle and even worse filled with more men with guns. As Jinrei quickly ascended the stairs he kept his mind focused, the smoke deeply hindered his vision but, the presence of another human being was something one couldn't ignore when trained like Jinrei. He used that to his advantage quietly making his way past some men and taking down others quickly. The guns didn't concern Jinrei at all, he was confident enough in his training to know that while the bare fist wasn't enough to overcome any might the mind was a great alternative. To carry a gun the men showed fear and a lack of confidence, more than likely casting light on their inability to fight, secondly they were all young men who even if they trained from birth would not have had an iota of training time equal to Jinrei's. Unexpectedly one of the men turned around and the gun was pointed directly at Jinrei, surprised to see the older man standing there the young man hesitated and it was a crucial mistake. Jinrei's hands were already moving in to disarm as the man was just beginning to realize he should pull the trigger; Jinrei's hands came together in a clapping motion, one hand striking the nose of the weapon the other hand pushing the butt of the weapon. The dual hits caused the young man to lose his grip on the weapon sending it spinning in the air, allow for Jinrei to swiftly dispatch of him with a knuckle straight into the gut. Slowly the young man crumpled over to his knees like paper and laid flat on the stairs. The gun cleanly fell into Jinrei's hands and he silently put it down next to him before exiting the staircase unnoticed. Jinrei exited on the third floor feeling Heihachi's presences nearby, he searched through the debris, shattered glass and smoke for the young Mishima.

"Mishima!" Jinrei called out, as he tried to move pieces of concrete and steel to see the floor. Coming out of a nearby room a man with a large rifle attacked Jinrei but, with swiftness Jinrei pushed the nose of the gun down with his left hand whilst horizontally pushing up his right hand and crouching, his right hand smacked perfectly where the attacker's fist gripped the handle and the gun did a clean somersault over Jinrei's left shoulder. Jinrei's right hand kept going and connected with the man's face, the punch stunned the man and left him vulnerable to the standing split kick that came forcefully against his chin, sending him soaring back into a wall.

"Mishima!" Jinrei called again but, this time a large piece of concrete flew right by Jinrei and a cloud of debris lifted in front of him. Jinrei prepared for attack but, none came just a loud growl.

"I'm right here!," Heihachi Mishima called back out moving some more minor debris off of him, he stood up and lightly dusted his suit off and ran his hand through his hair. "What the hell happened?" He asked.

"There were a few boats from the bay, one had an RPG, they must've known we were coming." Jinrei explained, Heihachi began walking over to Wang.

"Any idea who it is?" Heihachi asked walking past Jinrei and to the stairs.

"Not sure." Jinrei answered, Heihachi nodded.

"I'll be sure to ask." Heihachi spoke ready to go into the door leading to the staircase.

"Wait!," Jinrei quickly interjected. "…there's too many of them in the staircase." Jinrei explained.

"Too many?" Heihachi asked.

"Well, It's not the fastest way." Jinrei corrected, Heihachi frowned.

"What is?" Heihachi asked, realizing Jinrei was sensing something he wasn't. Jinrei pointed to the large whole blown up by the R.P.G.

"We're only on the third floor, shouldn't be a problem for a Mishima." Jinrei smiled with his teeth again looking senile but, anything but.

"Never the easy way…" Heihachi muttered as he went to the large gaping hole. "…will you be alright?" Heihachi asked.

"Me…?" Jinrei seemed genuinely shocked that Heihachi was refer to him. "…oh yes, I've been through much worse than this."

Heihachi nodded and threw himself out the gaping hole.

Bracing for impact he realized he was going to land semi on top of one of his attackers, so he re-braced his fall to add extra weight. Holding intertwined fist over his head like a powerful mace Heihachi hit the ground and smashed his arms downward knocking the gun clean out the young man's hands and sending his body careening to the ground. Seeing the commotion one man ran back to the speedboat to escape, Heihachi could sense this man knew more than the others but, before he could engage in pursuit several other men began to fire on him. With haste Heihachi took cover behind one of the cars the other men must have arrived in. Bullets flew into the car and Heihachi for a moment was pinned down but, he slammed his hand into the wheel and roughly pulled the hubcap off of it, for a moment he sat there holding the hubcap and as soon as there was a break in the shooting he stood up and flung the hubcap like a Frisbee at the men. The hubcap flew right into one of the men's chest and the man flew back as if pulled by some force into the water. The other two men were distracted and that was enough for Heihachi to get close enough to knock one over with a concentrated elbow to the stomach and demolish the other man with a powerful uppercut right into the chin. The man's teeth slammed together and shattered on contact as his body lifted off the ground and came back to the ground like a bag of bricks. Turning quickly Heihachi was just in time to see a man take off in another boat, Heihachi's legs bust forward to try to catch the boat before it drove out too far but, he was too late and the man was away. His mind refocused thinking on options to take, as he thought the entrance of the building erupted in chaos a man followed by Jinrei ran out and decisively towards a car.

"Heihachi!" Jinrei called and pointed strongly to the man as he quickly raced to the car. Jinrei didn't need to say anymore Heihachi understood what the urgency was for, this man had to have been the ring leader of the attack.. Again Heihachi broke out into a sprint, he was much further from the car than the man was but, he ran as quickly as his legs would carry him. The churning water splashing on the side of the dock spraying his face with a cool mist under the hot Chinese sun. As he was running Heihachi suddenly became aware of the restrictions his suit was giving him, training under weights and in training tunics was one form of discipline but, the restricting snugness of a suit was a different kind of discipline. Still Heihachi ran but, the man was already in the car as he jammed the key into the ignition he looked out the window shield and met Heihachi's gaze for the first time. Both men could see there was a decisiveness in the other and it filled them both with a spurt of energy, the man turned the ignition hard and the car's wheel's spun out for a moment and then jumped forward towards Heihachi. Not slowing down Heihachi dashed slightly to his right and as the car careened by he slammed his fist through the driver's side window and his knuckle slammed like a hammer into the side of the driver's face, Heihachi quickly retracted his hand just as the car screeched by. The car swerved chaotically and slammed into a wooden barrier that kept it from plunging into the water. In the car the man flexed his jaw shortly before looking in the rear view mirror and slammed the car in reverse and directly towards Heihachi. Thinking quickly the young Mishima through himself out of the way and the car spun out briefly again before diving forward and down the road. Not taking the time to even think Heihachi through himself to his feet and ran in pursuit of the car, as he did he ran to the first, unused, car and probed the knocked out attacker quickly for the keys. He found a set jumped in the car and began to continue the pursuit.

The road was one filled with trees on either side, at one point it became dirt, before being paved again and twisting into the city traffic. As Heihachi drove at top speed through the forest like area it hit him that he was chasing a man he didn't know in a car, through a part of China he wasn't wholly familiar with and with no purpose other than to catch him and then to do what if he caught him? Regardless he already started the pursuit and there was no benefit to not catching this man, the few people left in the building would be small timers, young guys contracted by the mafia who knew nothing more than the selling price of their services but this guy, Heihachi could tell as well as Jinrei could, knew something more. The look in his eyes when he tried to run Heihachi over was one of determination, something deep in there that was almost _personal_ towards Heihachi. Heihachi had people threaten him before but, to go to the extent as bombing a cooperate office in an attempt just to kill him, even to Heihachi that was extreme. It was important to get to the bottom of the situation before these people went, possibly, further to try and kill Heihachi. The road twisted and Heihachi braked and barely made the turn and soared back on the paved road. As he drove the tress began to thin on both sides and the city began to rise in front of him. Ahead he could see the man's car careening forward about to slam itself into the city traffic. The car was too far from Heihachi so he put the car in second gear and began to gain ground on the other man's car. Within moments both cars had interjected themselves into the moderately busy traffic. The first drove quickly but, didn't seem to be avoiding Heihachi, who tried to speed up to possibly side swipe the car and cause it to fishtail, at a traffic light the first car stopped but, Heihachi continued at top speed. It was then the man looked in his rear view mirror and saw Heihachi's car screaming towards his, shock filled his body and his chest burned for a second as his heart began to race with fear and surprise. Slamming his foot on the gas the man turned his car into traffic causing several cars to swerve and brake, Heihachi car slammed to a stop as the traffic blocked his way, the entire time he kept his eye on the car and turned his own to follow. In the other car the man scrambled with his right hand on the passenger's seat to pick something up, his hand went under the seat but, nothing was there either. His eyes darted from in front of him to the rear view mirror, Heihachi's car stayed in sight following him. He cursed to himself, there was nothing worse that could be happening to him, he'd rather be in a pursuit against a whole squadron of cops rather than one Mishima. He reached his hand to the glove compartment and tried to pull it open but, it resisted against him, he pulled again strongly but, to no avail. Looking back at the road he saw an abrupt turn coming and swerved in fear sending his car spinning, when the chaos settled down the young man had to take time to redirect himself, he had a definite destination to get to, the car pulled in reverse then punched forward again but, now the Mishima's car was closer. Again the man pulled at the glove compartment but, again failed to get it open, the crash at the dock must have jammed the compartment, he cursed loudly and slammed his hand against the compartment and loudly the door fell apart and a small black gun fell to the car's floor. Another quick turn and the man's right hand searched the floor like a frantic spider. His fingers reached out like long sharp legs desperately trying to find some part of the gun, he kept his eyes on the road but, then briefly looked down and saw the gun sitting there, like a small black pot of gold. The gun was quickly gripped in hand and turned to the rear window.

Heihachi drove slower but, more methodically now following the man, he noticed the man was beginning to drive more erratically. Heihachi surmised that fear was setting in, the more the man drove the more he was could see that Heihachi wasn't going anywhere and the more the fear would grip his body until he made a fatal flaw and Heihachi would be able to capture and question him. Heihachi pulled in front of another car and now only a few cars separated him and his prey, he took a deep breath and calmed his mind, within moments he would be in complete control of the situation.

Without warning the cars in front of him suddenly all pulled out their lanes as if they all were trying to avoid some kind of invisible obstacle in front of them, perplexed Heihachi leaned forward to see what was happening but, there was nothing on the road except other cars. It was then that the window shield exploded into pieces and rained all around him, he swerved right just as he realized it was a steady stream of bullets coming into his car. The bullets came through the remaining window shield and Heihachi was forced to turn into a side street,

"Damn it!" Heihachi cursed, he drove the car quicker down the sound side street. He went to glance at his rear view mirror but, that was totally gone as well. He frowned to himself and kept driving quickly.

The man looked in his rear view mirror just as Heihachi's car turned almost uncontrollably into a side street. He laughed out loud as loud as he could and gave a rallying curse. His car drove quickly and he looked at the street he was on, he had made great progress he was almost there and nothing was going to stop him. As he drove he sped past a police cruiser, he kept his eye on the car as it faded in his rear view mirror and was proud to see it hadn't even attempted to give pursuit. The Triads had most of this country tied up, the allegiance his group had made with them to take down Heihachi Mishima was a good one. The law enforcement was on their side, the had weapons, money, protection and a small army of men to take him down. It was more than enough to take one man down and when they did it would be the end of an era. They would have completed something many people have tried to before and when the Mishima Zaibatsu fell it would give the possibility for many other empires to grown and obtain control of their general regions. The Zaibatsu had taken control over law and order in multiple countries it was a step from being tyrannical and many people in government and the underworld of crime saw the Mishima's as a threat. It was time to bring them down and reclaim control, many people respected the duality of law and criminality, the relationship worked for many generations and their were benefits to criminals when the right politicians were in place and vice versa. If the Mishima's kept policing via the Zaibatsu a new order would be put in place and many, many people did not want that to happen. The politicians tried their way and now the criminals were trying theirs, the Mishima's may be powerful but, they were not invincible. There was more to it however, and he wasn't sure how more there was. He was just a young guy working for a larger machine, he had a boss and his boss had a boss and so on, ultimately he didn't know exactly who he was working for but, criminals were becoming united, united against the Mishima. The young man was surprised though, his boss told him that if Heihachi wasn't killed in the explosion then he would have to get away from the young Mishima as quickly as possible but, it was already over the Mishima had failed and he was home free.

The sudden crash caused the young man's head to slam and jerk violently out the, already, missing driver seat window. The shock caused his hands to turn the wheel in an adverse way and accidentally press down on the gas harder, sending the car spinning. As his thoughts became more collected the young man cursed in his reverie about the Mishima he must've missed some kind of turn and gotten into an accident, his left leg was in pain and his face had been cut by the broken glass on the window. The car game to a grinding halt and when all was peaceful for a moment he took the time to see what exactly had happened. His head looked to the front of the car but, there was nothing there, he checked the rear view mirror, nothing. The young beat up man looked at the passenger side and saw he had been T-boned by another car. The entire right side of the car was caved in, smoke from the other car began to clear and the young man attempted to move his body out the wreckage. It was then that the smoke thinned and the young man could see through the white veil. Their eyes met and to the young man's shock Heihachi Mishima was beginning to back up the car for another ram to the side. He cursed loudly, louder than he had ever cursed before, the look in Heihachi's eyes, it was too much, the pain in his body began to radiate from his leg to his hip and he felt the blood on his face trickling down his neck. With sudden clarity the young man slammed his foot on the gas, the tires spun loudly screeching against the asphalt with hellish shrill but, for what seemed to be an eternity the car went nowhere the young man pushed and pushed on the gas but, the car wasn't moving ahead fast enough. The Mishima's car was already on its approach back to ramming his, the black bumper was coming ever so closer and closer, quicker and quicker. Finally the car jumped forward just missing the debilitating blow from Heihachi's car and taking it on the tail end. His car fishtailed violently but, with controlled will the young man kept the car from becoming useless, he drove forward and looked quickly to see he was only feet away from the exit road he needed to be on. With a desperate twist the young man managed to get his car onto the road and drove up the incline.

With no window shield Heihachi tried to right his car to get behind the escaping car. The side street was a twisted, narrow one but, went around the main street and intersected at this point. Heihachi had driven in this part of China before and knew this, he got to the end of the side street and waited for the car to get into sight and went for the attack, it didn't work to his plan perfectly, he didn't intend to still be driving but, it was almost done, the man's car was almost completely wrecked, the right side was pushed in almost halfway of the total width of the car, his back window was blown out, the car had neither side view mirrors or a rear view mirror and the back driver side tire was coming undone. Heihachi pulled car into a chase and also began up the incline, he couldn't tell where they were going but, he could tell they were heading back to the shore and he could sense this was coming to an end, he could feel that the man was having conflicting feelings of relief and total fear, Heihachi tried to concentrate but, there was something nagging in his mind that he couldn't shake. Abruptly the road went from paved to dirt, ahead Heihachi could see a construction site ahead, a large bulldozer stood idle on the left side of the road like the skeleton of a prehistoric monster, looming over a small wooden shack and several barrels of what appeared to be oil and lying steel. The construction site was to the far right of the main road and consisted of three levels, each level had two roads, one that connected to the next level and one that, seemingly, went on into the trees. The highest level is where Heihachi raced on trying to capture his man but, to the right of them there was a higher level where the body of a building stood, only partially finished, like a body ripped of flesh and left with muscle and in some spots only bone. The young man's car began to swerve left and right, Heihachi couldn't tell if the man was losing control or was trying to kick up dirt, Heihachi stayed straight and didn't let it bother him. Steadily Heihachi's car was gaining on the young man's car, it wouldn't be long now before either the young man's car broke down or Heihachi would surpass him. The young man's car passed the small wooden shack and suddenly there was forceful _ping_ in his psyche, one he could not ignore, something was wrong. Heihachi slowed the car to a stop and watched as the young man's car drove down the road and into the trees.

Whatever was happening, Heihachi was sure that he couldn't follow the man directly, he sensed that was his destination, slowly the car began to move and Heihachi drove down to the second level and followed that level's road into the trees. He drove slowly looking to see if he could see the other car or some kind of building but, there were nothing but the seemingly endless trees. The smell of the water however, dictated that he was extremely close to the shore, feeling as if there wasn't much else he could do Heihachi stopped the car and got out.

Walking through the trees Heihachi had a feeling he hadn't had in some time. The sensation of walking through the Mishima gardens near Hon-Maru. The pure smell of foliage and water was something his childhood was filled with. For a moment he felt lost in his memory but, came to suddenly when he spotted another man with a rifle patrolling. Heihachi smiled to himself, his instincts had served him well there seemed to be a group of people nearby. Quietly Heihachi walked up behind the man with the rifle slung around him. Lightly he tapped the man who turned to see what he was and slapped his fist sternly on the side of his face. The man had a brief moment of shock before his eyes rolled in his head and he collapsed to the ground. He fell slowly and Heihachi aided his fall in the attempt to minimize the sound. As Heihachi went through the man's pocket to see if he could gain some more information on who these people were, he realized all of his attackers were dressed identically and this man was as well. Heihachi took a quick intake of his attire and noticed he was dressed similarly, his tie however was quite different, Heihachi frowned and took off his own tie stuffed it in the man's pocket and removed the comatose man tie and put it on. As a precaution he also took the rifle, unloaded it and slung it around his shoulder too. Walking out of the trees and to the shore Heihachi was surprised to see there was a small dock, there were three more men in sight and the wrecked car of his attacker, on the water there were more boats like the ones by the building, from the shadows Heihachi's attacker jumped onto a boat and began to take off into the water. Still determined Heihachi walked out the shadows and up to the remaining boat, he took a glance and noticed there was no key in the ignition. Heihachi took another look around and saw the nearest man had the keys, without thinking twice the young Mishima walked up behind the man and snatched the keys off his belt with great force. The man spun around but, it was too late, one well placed kick sent the man flying into the water. The loud splash got the attention of the others and Heihachi was quick to get back to the remaining boat, the men yelled at him but, no one could tell if he was an intruder by his clothing and within moments Heihachi was pulling out into the water in pursuit again.

This chase was going to be different Heihachi decided, it needed a different touch, the direct way hadn't served him wholly last time, so now he would follow the man to see where exactly he was going. The day was getting hot, the sun was heating Heihachi from both the sky and the reflection off the water. In the distance he kept track of the young man, who was now a small speck on the horizon. It was at this point Heihachi realized that even if he found where the man was going, he wasn't going to be able to go back without running into trouble back at the shore and who knew what was awaiting him at his unknown destination. Heihachi frowned but, there was nothing else he could do about it now, he was in the middle of the ocean, he had no choice but to go forward.

The smell of the water filled his lungs and flowed through his body once again. Heihachi felt most calm and powerful when he was around the elements of nature. Jinpachi told him that the place Heihachi decided to train and focus would live inside him for the rest of his life, that the power of the place would always have some supernatural bond with him that could never be broken and whenever Heihachi experienced similar elements throughout the world the place would reverberate in his mind, body and soul and aid him in his plight. Heihachi thought it was a bunch of talk but, now he could feel Hon-Maru inside of him vibrating and lending energies to his focus and strength. On the horizon a structure began to grow, quickly it seemed to rise out of the water and sprawl over Heihachi's tiny boat. In the distance he could see the other boat piloting right under the structure, it was like a floating metal island and Heihachi could already sense a cold lack of life coming from within it but, he continued on.

He was right in his initial thought of it being a floating island, the structure was held up by massive floaters and appeared to have an engine of its own, meaning it probably could be piloted, Heihachi's boat docked neatly in its space next to the boat he was following, the other man had arrived at least ten minutes before Heihachi and there were no guards to meet Heihachi. Cautiously as well as perceptively Heihachi tied the small boat to its post and took inventory of his location. There was no way he was going to be able to escape this place without using the boat and that required for him to untie it, start it up and get it out of range of fire, in an emergency those three processes would be 'cutting it thin' as Jinrei would say, not to mention the possibility that the floating island structure might be able to move and if it could it would more than likely be faster than any of the boats used to reach it.

'_a structure like this cost money'_ Heihachi thought to himself, he noticed even though the structure as plain, it still was sound and clearly not a cheap endeavor. Heihachi walked and noticed that the structure was greater in depth than it was in size, a door lead to an inside and without hesitation he walked in.

Inside it was dark, a few overhead lamps paved the way through the darkness, this meant there was a generator on the structure as well, Heihachi made a note of it. There was a silent icy metallic presence inside, his footsteps echoed quietly and the lights were placed closely enough to see the next checkpoint but, far enough to keep the darkness ever present. The young Mishima continued walking and as he did the faint sound of machinery began to grow, to his right he could see another door faintly, it was not illuminated by the lights which puzzled him slightly. Heihachi looked up and noticed the illuminated lights were not the only lights on the ceiling, there were many lights still inactive. Heihachi frowned as he thought of reasons why they would be off; he shrugged it off for the moment and went to the door. On the other side he could hear loud machinery being muddled by the thick door, Heihachi put his hand on the handle and pulled but to no avail. The door was locked but, there didn't appear to be some kind of keyhole, to the right of the handle was an electronic console with a keypad. The keypad was adorned by the numbers one through nine then an enter key, there was some kind of password he didn't know, again he frowned, this wasn't flowing his favor.

And then a rogue thought entered his mind, it seemed to just explode in his mind and dominate his thinking.

'_What had happened to the man he followed?'_ It suddenly hit him that few things in life were coincidences and this thought wasn't one either, just as Heihachi spun around the gun smashed into the side of his right arm, the pain swelled but, went generally ignored as he turned he stiffened his arm and countered the frame of the gun with the fame of his bone and the rifle spun out of the man's hand; he tried to gain the upper hand by punching but, the punch met the same opposition as the gun and a desperate kick was caught by Heihachi's other arm. Heihachi bashed his fist into the man's stomach and released his leg before grabbing his neck and smashing him against the wall. The man released a breath of air as if he was spitting out poison, he thrashed he legs in a desperate attempt to stop Heihachi but, Heihachi hammered his arm on the man's legs causing them to snap loudly like lighting tearing through a tree. The man yelled loudly and swore even louder sending echoes of profane and pain inspired whimpering into the air bouncing off the metallic walls which gave no sense of sympathy to his situation. Heihachi held the man strongly by the neck and looked him in the eyes, there was much fear, fear that would aid him.

"Now," Heihachi began, he took another look around to see if there was anyone coming from the dark areas. "Is there anyone else to worry about on this vessel?" Heihachi asked the man murmured slightly but, Heihachi applied pressure and he seemed to come back to reality.

"Not yet." the young man answered tersely.

"Go on." Heihachi implored.

"If you got here, you Had to come from our check point, they're going to send so many people here you won't know what hit you." the man explained with confidence, Heihachi studied his eyes, he didn't think the man was lying their probably wasn't anybody else on the vessel, Jinpachi was better at reading the truth from people than Heihachi was but, still the fear in his eyes and the confidence was telling Heihachi he wasn't lying.

"Good," Heihachi added. "What's the password to this door?" Heihachi motioned with his head to the door, the young man's eyes followed, a deeper fear filled his eyes, something was beyond this door the man didn't want him to see.

"I don't know" The man lied unconvincingly Heihachi applied more pressure than before.

"I could snap your little neck into eight pieces right now," Heihachi's voice grew and was laminated with force and power. "and you mean to _lie _to me?" Heihachi lifted the man slightly off the ground. He struggled to talk but, Heihachi could tell from his eyes and what little was audible that the man was only groping around for some kind of sympathy, fed up with the man's wasting time he applied the slightest bit more pressure and felt the man's neck tremble in his grip. The man's eyes bulged, he began to speak through the grip.

"the code is 10-1-3-11" Heihachi read his eyes and saw the truth, so he loosened his grip but, then smashed his head against the wall knocking him out. Heihachi returned to the keypad and put in the codes and the door lock turned green and the electronic hiss of acceptance opened the door. Heihachi tried to make sense of the code, the numbers must mean something but, it was of little consequence now. On the other side of the door the workings of massive machines created the growl and heartbeat of the vessel. Suddenly Heihachi couldn't feel more detached from nature; the synthetic heat pushed against his skin, the smell of burning metal and smoke filled his lungs now. He walked slowly wary of this place, it felt like the opposite of everything he cherished in the world, it felt like hell.

To Heihachi's surprise this wasn't an engine room, it was some kind of miniature processing plant, large enough to be impressive on a vessel of this type but, small enough to not be able to complete any heavy manufacturing. Whatever they were creating here this had to be the prototype, fear of some kind kept them in a secret vessel in the middle of nowhere, and desperateness had them continuing to create whatever it was they were creating. Through the smoke Heihachi could see a conveyer belt, he followed it slowly looking around, he couldn't tell what any of the parts were, metal here, steel there; being picked up and dropped off, crushed, cut, smashed and seared. This was like nothing Heihachi had seen ever before a manufacturing plant on a floating vessel, it had to be illegal so if he could find the controls he could bring this thing back to the shore, and it could give him cover against the other men most certainly coming after him. Quickly disinterested in what was being made Heihachi turned to leave and find the controls to the vessel and as he did he ran right into something he hadn't expected to see. Hanging crudely by a hook was the human looking skeleton but, this skeleton was made of steel and crafted metal, on a small side table next to the hanging body, on that table was a folder of papers, he ran through the papers quickly, technical things he didn't understand. He read through some reports but, it gave him no sense of what was happening though he found it curious that the same number used to open the door kept coming up, referencing the project. Project 10-1-3-11 was referenced many times, it seemed convoluted to keep referencing the project to a series of numbers, and that's when he remembered several secret reports in the Zaibatsu being referenced as numerical codes officially but, each number in the code was the numerical representation of the letter in the projects name.

'_So 10 is J,' _Heihachi thought to himself doing the math. _' J, A, C-'_ his thought ran out of his mouth accidentally.

"JACK" Heihachi spoke aloud. The shock hit him hard, the JACK program was a top secret Mishima operation that hadn't even been put into operation yet, how could it be here? The thought of the Mishima Zaibatsu being compromised filled Heihachi up with a series of emotions, who could have learned about the program and how could whoever was behind this vessel be so advanced in the program?

Heihachi looked up at the lifeless body it looking down with lifeless eyes at him, he took the folders and quickly left the room. He followed the lights all the way to the exit and was prepared to leave on the boat he had entered on but, to his dismay the vessel was already surrounded by several smaller speed boats, instinctively Heihachi put the folder into his coat and held it there. The boats hadn't docked but, they were close enough to be a problem, Heihachi stood still, it was better to be captured and then escape than to be shot and killed he surmised.

"Heihachi Mishima?!" A voice arose from a megaphone from the closest boat, Heihachi made a slight but, noticeable gesture of acknowledgement, the man with the megaphone smiled. "…good please board this boat" The man finished, with his fist clenched ready to commandeer the boat Heihachi began to board, it was only when he was on did he notice Wang Jinrei smiling from inside the small boat.

"Jinrei what's going on?" Heihachi asked, Jinrei smiled more and gestured to the man with the megaphone.

"After you took off like a bat out of hell, I decided to call some friends of mine to assist you." Jinrei explained.

"Mr. Mishima, it's a pleasure," the man with the megaphone said holding his hand out to shake Heihachi's hand. "I'm Kai Wulong of the Hong Kong Department of Security" The name rang a bell, at least the last name did, Wulong, Hong Kong had a stretch of the Wulong sons in their police department, good cops who Heihachi felt could be trusted. In fact Jinpachi had named Wulong ambassador to the Hong Kong police force for the Zaibatsu when the Chinese government needed help with their crime rate.

"Mr. Wulong, it's a pleasure to finally meet you as well." Heihachi greeted, suddenly realizing the worst of his danger had passed. Wulong smiled widely at the sight of Heihachi Mishima.

"When Jinrei told me you might need assistance I brought over my best task force, the men at the dock have all been arrested and these men," He gestured to the remaining boats. "will thoroughly search this vessel for anything that might lead us to who's behind this incredible attack." Wulong explained. Heihachi nodded and smiled back at Wulong.

"That's welcomed news, I knew Jinrei was connected but, I wasn't aware it went as deep as Kai Wulong." Heihachi explained; Wulong laughed and gestured to Wang.

"Wang is a friend of the family, He fought in the war with my father Leilong Wulong, and then they worked together again in the Hong Kong police force later on, he and my father were the two reasons I decided to enter service." Kai spoke, Heihachi nodded, though he knew a lot about Wang he didn't know many specifics. Wang was open yet, private about many details in his life and until now he didn't know he was affiliated with the Wulongs at all.

"Your father was a far superior detective than I was," Jinrei reminisced. "I could find the criminals but, Leilong was the one who'd scare them into telling the truth, they barely ever paid me any mind once he came into the room." Jinrei's voices trailed off as if he was talking to some other person. The boats engine groaned and it turned back to shore.

"Either way, he spoke of you highly and I always respected you." Kai added; Heihachi nodded.

"As does my father." Heihachi agreed.

"Jinpachi Mishima was someone my father always wanted to meet, we had no clue you knew Mr. Mishima until after the Zaibatsu was fully formed." Wulong spoke.

"Well," Jinrei started. "I never had a reason to mention it, I grew up with Jinpachi and we briefly lost contact during the war but, as luck would have it we met again and he had made quite the name for himself," Jinrei laughed. "I remember when Jinpachi Mishima was afraid to go into a small cave because he thought a witch lived in it." He continued to laugh happily at his childhood.

"Hard to imagine now of what he's become" Kai Wulong said with slight disbelief.

"He's only a man…" Heihachi spoke. "…Flesh and blood, much like you or I". He finished, all this talk of his father was making him feel guilty about not visiting lately.

"That's what makes him so amazing," Kai revealed. "either way, we were alarmed at the scope of the attack on you, whatever you were here for it must have had someone very upset." Kai Wulong explained.

"You don't know why I'm here today?" Heihachi asked.

"Sadly no," Wulong began. "There's so much going on they seem to 'forget' to inform me of interesting matters like these. The higher ups rather have me doing paper work all day." Wulong explained.

"Sounds like red tape to me." Heihachi explained.

"Honestly its outright corruption," Wulong explained bluntly. "I've made a name for myself for being the 'good' cop, I've turned down my share of advances from all types of criminals, and now the ones on their payroll are trying to keep me as suppressed as possible." Wulong explained, Heihachi frowned.

"I knew the triads were pushing their way into the interior, I wasn't aware they were so well connected." Heihachi explained, Wulong shrugged.

"The Triads are definitely a problem but, it's not just them who've broken the police department's shell." Wulong illuminated.

"Other syndicates?" Heihachi asked.

"Most likely, we think this attack is the largest one, I didn't receive one call from any officers in the jurisdictions of the initial attack or any of the places your chase went through." Wulong detailed.

"You think they had your men pinned?" Jinrei asked.

"Its more than likely, in your chase you passed a police cruiser, that officer didn't report anything suspicious at all," Wulong went on. "If it weren't for Jinrei we wouldn't have known exactly what happened, now we know to question the officers who were there."

"Do you think they'll talk?" Heihachi asked, Wulong shook his head.

"We're not as scary as we used to be, a prison term isn't close to whatever it is this syndicate is holding above their heads. The best we can hope for is scaring a small timer into telling us something minute but, other than that I hate to say I don't think this is going to go too far. Whatever we find is going to be from that vessel back there." Heihachi took a deep breath and sighed, he suddenly felt exhausted.

"If you do find anything, the Zaibatsu would be greatly interested in knowing what it was." Heihachi announced.

"At this rate your men would probably get further than mine could before the corruption crippled it." Wulong sighed, Heihachi didn't speak for a long while. For several minutes the sound of the water splashing against the boat, the sun beating down, the cool air rising up, the contrast of emotions and nature found itself fighting at the very heart of Heihachi, he thought of the papers in his coat, corruption had made its way into the Zaibatsu too but, he decided not to mention it to Wulong or Jinrei, he vowed not to let it last long. It would be like pulling weeds out of a sprawling, beautiful garden and then grinding it into mulch.

"This syndicate has made a mistake attacking me directly, it'll be both my job and the Zaibatsu's to find this syndicate and bring it to justice." Heihachi finally spoke, Wulong nodded and they all rode in silence until they reached the shore.

When the small boat came to a stop it was Jinrei who spoke first and surprised Heihachi.

"You should go see your fiancée Mishima, I'm going to see your father and update him on this disturbing development." Wang slowly got off the boat and walked away, in his voice there was seriousness and slight alarm, Heihachi knew well enough that when Jinrei sounded concerned, there was something to be truly concerned about. When Jinrei left Wulong turned to Heihachi also with seriousness on his face.

"I know I can't promise much Mr. Mishima but," Wulong began. "I'm going to make sure I help get to the bottom of this. Though the corruption may be widespread it hasn't reached me or several of my colleagues, with whatever resources we have I will uncover the identity of this syndicate and assure you protection from it." Wulong vowed, Heihachi smiled, in Wulong's face he could see honesty and virtue, he instantly liked him.

"Your pledge is one that the Zaibatsu will remember for years to come." Heihachi spoke truthfully and shook Wulong's hand before taking a cruiser back to the Zaibatsu headquarters.

Months later:

The white chrysanthemum stared back at him silently but, he rivaled its silence strongly. His thoughts mounted, his emotions were clear but, yet something was on his mind that didn't lead him to relax. The other people at the reception were all talking and showing support but, he could not rest his mind. The flower seemed to be the only spot he could find peace in, silently it spoke to him of natural things, of the balance of the world, the bond between human and its non-human comrades on the planet, he closed his eyes and listened intently. In his mind's eye he could see the emerald greens and ruby reds of life, the pulse of life flowing inside the planet, in the air and within himself. The celestial beings of good and evil never showed their hands but, one was pushing through right now and his mind struggled to keep it back, he called the natural world to help him to repel the unwanted presence. He opened his eyes and the blue sky greeted him, large dots of mist white punctuated it, the sky seemed endless, like an infinity of vastness, his mortal life seemed like nothing in comparison, in comparison everything felt much more clear but, when he was back at this level it all became that much more confusing. So he waited there next to the white chrysanthemum and talked to it silently, hoping some answer would lead him to clarity.

Elsewhere Heihachi Mishima did what he hated the most: mingled. Too many people with too many questions he hadn't even taken the time to think up the answers to. Banal questions such as; where he was living?, what presents did he really want? Where were they going on for their honeymoon? It was all so much to suddenly care about and there were too many other things to worry about. Nevertheless he was more than happy this day, every time a guest asked him an increasingly more banal question he simply looked over across the way and saw his beautiful wife smiling in her wedding dress more happy than anyone he'd ever seen in his life. She was gorgeous in every sense of the word but, even more so she was gracious. The guest asked her questions too and she smiled and answered each one but, each time she had a look of total understanding, she didn't gush, she took everything with stride. The true reality of the situation hadn't settled into Heihachi yet, he was married now, this woman he had met as his secretary was now his beautiful wife. It was a day he had long thought about but, never really thought he'd see. Being here was a surreal experience for him; all his training and knowledge hadn't prepared him for the bond he would feel with another human. Even as he stood there and watched the events unfold Heihachi felt as if he was a third party viewer seeing the event from somewhere in the sky, it was hard to believe that he was there and even more unbelievable that he was one of the main participants in it.

Still however, it felt good, Heihachi's life had seemed to gain something new. The Zaibatsu was important but, it was not everything his family was everything. Now he had this beautiful, amazing wife whom loved him more than he could imagine and he loved her the same way, they were prepared for a life together and Heihachi was ready to divide his Zaibatsu responsibilities with his responsibilities as a husband, it would be difficult but, that didn't bother Heihachi at all he was excited to just be with Kazume. To be excited about something was a sensation Heihachi hadn't felt in a long time, apprehension, anticipation yes but, excitement had not been one of the primary emotions Heihachi had experienced lately. He didn't look forward to meetings or gaining more money for the company, it was a step in the right direction but, it didn't supply Heihachi, the man, with anything worthwhile, with anything of any sustenance. Now, though, standing in this blooming garden enriched with the many colors of nature, among the sea of black and white suits and smiling faced Heihachi felt a sense of calm, tranquility and in that excitement came. The complications of running a company was nothing compared to the simplicity of the idea of spending the rest of your life with someone you loved and Heihachi now knew what it felt to understand the difference between the two. Suddenly his prospective on both his life and the Zaibatsu had changed, it was as if Heihachi had been looking at his life in black and white and a flush of colors had invaded every inch of what he thought he knew. As he thought of the changes Kazume ,in her dress, walked over to Heihachi and put her arm around his waist and hugged him. She looked into his eyes and smiled and he looked down at her with the same admiration, several guest came over with more questions and exclamation of how nice of a couple they made. Only one person who came up to them seemed to matter, Jinrei was rarely seen in a suit and tie and, in fact, Heihachi didn't think he'd come to the wedding reception. Not because he thought Jinrei didn't care but, because he wasn't one for spectacle to his surprise however, Jinrei not only showed up to the reception he was there for the ceremony and was one of the first people to arrive. He smiled widely and pat Heihachi on the shoulder.

"Now this is a sight I thought I'd never see." Jinrei commented. "But, it doesn't surprise me too much anymore. A good looking young man with a full head of hair always gets the beautiful women." Jinrei took off his cap to expose his bald head and let out a hearty laugh, Kazume and Heihachi joined in.

"Well Jinrei," Kazume started. "I may know a few good looking ladies who may be interested in you." Kazume mentioned; Jinrei faced turned to surprise and then sheer delight.

"Oh ho ho, my young lady," Jinrei could barely say through laughter. "Those days are long over!"

"I guess I should thank you too" Kazume said to Jinrei, he cocked his head to the side slightly like a small animal would.

"Oh?"

"Heihachi always mentions how it was two men who crafted him to be the man that he is today, and you're one of them." Kazume explained, slightly Jinrei seemed to blush.

"Well, he's a Mishima, he would have turned out to be reputable regardless of anything I did or said," Jinrei complimented. "Though I have to say, he's definitely managed to resist my bad drinking habit!" Jinrei burst out into laughter again and took Kazume by the hand, together they walked off and began to dance together.

It was then that Heihachi looked around some more at the reception party and that's when he noticed the man standing in front of the white flower just staring at it, as if transfixed by something within it. Heihachi watched the man silently for a while, lately Jinpachi had been acting strangely, he was oddly quiet and dismissive and seemed flustered by the slightest adverse of opinions, he retreated further into himself as each day went by. Heihachi was worried but, wary not to push his father further into whatever recluse he was already in. They had been out of contact for a sizeable amount of time. Heihachi felt guilty, he and his father were close but, now Kazume was around, sometimes he felt as if maybe Jinpachi resented her for taking his son. That was just a slight part of it though, Jinpachi had been sending Heihachi to do more and more for the Zaibatsu, and that amount of work was keeping Heihachi from doing anything, sometimes it felt as if Jinpachi was trying to keep Heihachi away. Heihachi could sense the shift in his father, before he was able to feel his father's mood now, things were unclear and clouded even as he watched his father now from across the small distance his eyesight was more capable than his other senses and Heihachi was always taught not to rely on the power of physical sight, because looks could be deceiving. Heihachi looked around to see if anyone was approaching and then walked over to his father, he got unusually close to his father before Jinpachi seemed to notice he had come up to him, when the great man's body turned to Heihachi his physical might was betrayed by the fragile look in his eyes.

"What's wrong father?" Heihachi asked concerned, Jinpachi took a deep breath and sighed before issuing a smile to his only son.

"Nothing," Jinpachi lied. "I'm just a little exhausted." it wasn't even marginally convincing.

"You can't lie to me so easily Jinpachi," it was the first time Heihachi had ever used his father's name to him in a long time, it felt alien he felt disobedient for doing it. "I can see something is wrong." Heihachi said with slight force. Jinpachi looked away from his son and eyed some of the other patrons, he leaned closer to his son.

"But you cannot _feel_ what's wrong," Jinpachi noticed. "Can you?" Heihachi nodded.

"I cannot," Heihachi admitted. "You've become further and further from my senses, at first I thought my distance from you was hindering me but, you stand before me and yet seem at your furthest." Heihachi explained in detail. Jinpachi nodded and a wisdom began to flow from his body.

"It is the nature of our enemy," Jinpachi spoke methodically. "It is clever and hides within the shadows. Cunning in it's plan to hide itself from you. It _fears_ you like no other, it plans to use me against you, even now it speaks to me quietly, lightly prodding me to try and destroy you at this very moment but, it is weak now and it sees you becoming more and more powerful as time goes by. It intends to hide me from you to take control of my body and crush you. It preys on your weakness, in the hesitation you will have when the time comes. You have to now be prepared, prepared to do what must be done, you must be prepared to-" Jinpachi spoke slowly but, with urgency.

"Father enough," Heihachi looked away but, Jinpachi followed his gaze.

"You must be ready to kill me." Jinpachi concluded, Heihachi looked his father directly in the eye.

"That day is far off," Heihachi said quickly. "You are speaking as if you cannot hold out any longer"

"It's power grows with each passing moment." Jinpachi explained.

"Yet here you are speaking with me about destroying it." Heihachi countered, Jinpachi seemed to snap into some new thought at the words.

"Yes," Jinpachi spoke. "You are right, before you came over I was having a difficult time separating my thoughts from its own but, now I can hear my own mind clearly. Now that you're here." Jinpachi deduced.

"I only want you to be strong." Heihachi explained.

"With you I am, _you_ are the key to this Heihachi, my son, it fears you more than anything and when you come close to me it recedes." Jinpachi explained.

"Together it will fear _us_ father." Heihachi corrected, Jinpachi shook his head with a smile.

"No but, together we may unlock the secret to how you will undo this curse" Jinpachi explained, Heihachi nodded in agreement and smiled, he put his hand on Jinpachi's shoulder and squeezed it.

"If I am what you say I am," Heihachi started. "Then you are the _father_ of that being." the words hung in the air for a long moment and a smile crept onto Jinpachi's face.

"I should meditate and read on this, there are book in Hon-Maru that have yet to be explored on the nature of the curse, they are advanced and large but, they may hold some clues as to what to do next." Jinpachi looked excited and happy, he made a move to leave. "Wait!" Jinpachi stopped.

"What's wrong?" Heihachi asked, Jinpachi dug deep into a side pocket and picked out a small box.

"This was my gift to Kazume." He handed the box to a semi-astonished Heihachi and was off to the exit before Heihachi could say anything else, Heihachi looked at the white chrysanthemum and then did something he hadn't done in years: he smelled it.

After finishing with that Heihachi went back to the party and again put up with the uninteresting people again, before long Kazume came up to him and gave him a concerned look.

"Your father," she began sheepishly. "He doesn't approve of me." She concluded; Heihachi looked at her with a slight bit of shock on his face.

"What would make you think that?" Heihachi asked; she looked away from him and blushed a little from embarrassment.

"I saw the two of you speaking and now he's leaving." She explained, Heihachi laughed softly and hugged her firmly.

"He's leaving because he has something very important to take care of," Heihachi explained.

"Oh, I feel embarrassed." Kazume meekly looked away from her new husband.

"You shouldn't," He paused. "This is his gift to you." He handed over the box to Kazume who took it delicately like a child holding a new piece of candy. Slowly she opened it and her eyes widen as she placed her eyes on the gift.

"Oh my, it's," she paused for genuine lack of words. "beautiful." In her hand she held up the crystal butterfly made entirely of diamond. Heihachi marveled at the gift to, it was not like his father to send so much money on a gift this way. The diamond butterfly stood three and a half inches tall and one and a half inches thick, pure diamond all around.

"Indeed it is," Heihachi said quietly. "It's probably more expensive than the ring…" Heihachi's voice trailed off.

"I don't know if I can accept anything so expensive Heihachi." Kazume commented, Heihachi nodded in empathy.

"I know but, he won't take it back and," Heihachi smiled. "He must really adore you." He looked at the diamond butterfly again and then back to the exit where Jinpachi had just left, a quiet thought entered his mind and passed without much fanfare yet, in it was something he hadn't seen before. Today Heihachi felt a release from his father, he felt on a parallel line with him and in that he felt more power than he had ever felt before, on this day Heihachi was invincible.

The newlywed Mishima's decided not to take a honeymoon, with the Zaibatsu compromised still Kazume and Heihachi both felt his presence would be better suited as close to the company as possible. Instead in the following weeks Heihachi took Kazume on several trips with him to different cities, it was a month long excursion that cost a great deal of money but, also proved to be beneficial when Kazume was able to sort out a few details in the companies records from home. They moved out of their livable apartment and moved to a larger one in the heart of downtown Tokyo in secret, they booked most of their plans under various alias to avoid fanfare and unwanted attention. Heihachi worked difficult hours from as early in the morning as possible to the mid-afternoon so that he may be able to spend time with his wife. He told Jinrei and Jinpachi about the files he had found on the floating vessel and both went into action combing through the various details and people in the Zaibatsu who could be of interest, meanwhile Heihachi played everything close to his chest not ready to trust anyone fully just yet. Whomever had leaked the information on the JACK project was someone who had clearance to that type of information which meant it was someone in a relative amount of power. His insight informed him that it wasn't someone he knew personally but, other than that he didn't have a clue as to where to begin. Though it was a pressing issue it all took a minor role compared to the marriage he had now entered in, and he wasn't 'allowed' to bring his work problems back home with him, he had other little issues to worry about with Kazume and those were the tiny battles they fought together.

That didn't mean however, that he was able to completely keep his problems at work, sometimes they followed him home. Not long after the wedding Kazume considered going back to work for someone, even if it weren't for the Zaibatsu, the more she stayed home during the door the more she felt like she was wasting. Heihachi wasn't initially fond of this idea, he wanted Kazume to relax and not let anything give her any problems but, when she explained the that the line between relaxation and stagnation was a fine one he became more open about her finding work but, insisted that because of his situation at the Zaibatsu that she'd work anywhere else. Kazume understood Heihachi's position and agreed that she'd stay away from the Zaibatsu to preserve her safety. So during the day Heihachi went to work and Kazume went in search of work, mostly unsuccessfully she was urged to amend her resume by eliminating all references of the Zaibatsu and using her maiden name instead of her newly achieved Mishima last name. It frustrated her but, she knew Heihachi meant well with his suggestions and she remembered the stress he had when she observed him at the Zaibatsu, he claimed to be under more and more dangerous stress that he didn't want her to be apart of. Though Heihachi pledged truthfulness to Kazume he constantly lied to her about the severity of his situation, she didn't know at all about the assassination attempt in China, Heihachi merely didn't mention it and the News stations were paid not to mention Heihachi by name. The lying bothered Heihachi but, he felt in his heart that her knowing about him almost being killed almost weekly wasn't something she needed to know. she was so happy just to be alive and be with him the extra stressed just seemed unnecessary.

The investigation into who had tried to kill him in China and who had gotten the JACK plans out of the Zaibatsu's had hit a snag, whoever was behind the plan was thorough in their plans, the only way to get any information on what had happened was to find out who the men were working for and already six of ten of the men were released. It was frustrating for Heihachi, not because he feared for his life but, rather because he hated to see an injustice unfixed, he had began to distance himself from the Zaibatsu, he planned to maintain some control but, had already made it clear to Jinpachi that he would only serve as a worker in the Zaibatsu but, didn't seek control of the Zaibatsu anymore. Jinpachi wasn't happy about the choice but, he did express that he was proud of his son and his daughter-in-law; Jinpachi and Heihachi had already talked about a potential plan to pass the Zaibatsu off to someone else but, it hadn't been solidified yet so they neither mentioned it to anyone else.

The Zaibatsu worked more with the Hong Kong police department and Kai Wulong served as their middle man, Heihachi met with Wulong often to discuss various issues and to see how one could support the other, the Zaibatsu worked more with the Chinese government than the Japanese government but, still offered support and even put into place a duality agreement between the two countries to combat crime, both countries hesitated on the measure, Wulong explained that the Chinese mafia was wary of the Mishima's but, the word was that they weren't even considering attacking the Mishima's directly but, was interested in keeping the Zaibatsu out of the infrastructure of the Chinese government, Heihachi had surmised as much but, his lack of sound information on the Japanese government is what bothered Heihachi. The Yakuza were bold and Heihachi knew at this point the was probably public enemy number one on their list however, there was no sign of the Yakuza anywhere, they weren't ones to hide an attack, if it were them who had tried to kill Heihachi in China then they would have said so and even worse meant that they had some kind of tentative deal with the Chinese Triads to have international movement. Wulong and Heihachi worried that in his proactive assault against crime he was creating a new kind of crime, that in creating a power greater than both then they were forcing the two to become something stronger and more dangerous in the end.

It was a risk Heihachi was willing to take and Wulong was less excited about, Wulong explained that Heihachi was more powerful than he and if Hong Kong fell apart today Kai would be at the mercy of whoever he had around him but, Heihachi had an independent source he could go to. Heihachi understood Wulong's position and agreed to keep his eye on China whilst easing off of the criminal hunting in attempt to get the criminals at ease and seize them when they were comfortable and not on guard. It was a plan that was going to take time but, it didn't require any immediate attention which meant he could go home to Kazume and not worry about it for some time.

Kazume and Heihachi lived on a street that was open down the middle with buildings on either side and it was perfectly lined up with the setting sun. So at the end of the day the sun would fall between the two streets and cast an deep yellow, then orange, then purple glow on the street. Heihachi didn't wear a disguise per se but, instead he wore a pair of spectacles and mentally took his attention off of himself, it was a technique that wasn't noticeable but, his father had taught him that if one focused on themselves others would too and the adverse was true as well, if one simply unfocused on themselves then other's would be less likely to notice as well, the spectacles helped as well to throw off people.

Heihachi crossed the street in the orange glow and made his way into the building, he and Kazume lived on the fourth floor and he walked up the steps everyday feeling guilty about his lack of training, he put his key in the door and walked in.

"I've returned" he called out; usually Kazume would come to greet him if she wasn't doing something but, this time she just called out an acknowledgement. Heihachi took off his jacket and hung it up in the closet before sitting on his couch, they had a television but, rarely used it, Heihachi spent his free time reading ancient books on how to focus his body and maximize his power. Books on Buddhism were his favorite, there were a lot of text on the finality of mortality for the body but, the infiniteness of power through the spirit, his favorite saying was 'Shiki soku zekuu' which meant 'form in itself is emptiness', though Heihachi wasn't a practicing Buddhist he studied many different religions and found truth in their similar teachings and actionable request but, found that none seemed to answer _all_ the questions and many of the more popular ones raised more questions and practices of intolerance and fear than they did to solve them. Still he felt there was a lot to learn in religion, most of the ancients works documented on page were written in religious journals, The Mishima's used to be scholars who documented major shifts in political powers, philosophy and ideals. Many of the books in the possession of what was left of the Mishima's were books collected over many generations and possessed knowledge long forgotten by modern society. Buddhism was one of the few possessors of this knowledge that still existed in the modern world and Heihachi was drawn to its ancient philosophy. Power through meditation and mediation was the very first lesson than Jinpachi taught Heihachi, their strength as Mishima was unparalleled but, the body was fickle and corruptible, most of the battles fought in life were those of the mind and even the ones fought by fist were dictated and controlled by ideas of the mind, so control of the mind was the most important. Though Heihachi was only twenty-five he was already finding it hard to meditate, Jinpachi explained this would happen as he got older, he explained that Sin was the price for knowledge, that the more Heihachi grew to know the harder it would be to center himself and tap out of the material world and that ability is what separated him from the average man to be driven by one's _self_ rather than one's _desires._

Heihachi stood from the couch and called to Kazume again who answered from within the kitchen, she must have been busy so he went to greet her. He walked into the kitchen and smiled before giving Kazume a kiss on the forehead. She stood still with her back on the counter.

"How was your day?" Heihachi asked his wife, she managed a smile.

"Fine." she answered tersely. Heihachi nodded and opened the window.

"Did you find work?" He asked turning back to her.

"No"

"Did you find any more potential candidates?" He pried, something felt off.

"A few." It was then that Heihachi suddenly felt the fear in Kazume, it wasn't there a moment ago but, suddenly it erupted in her like a geyser of emotions.

"What's bothering you Kazume?" Heihachi walked close to her, her body was rigid, there was fear coming from within her but, it was not directed to him.

"Nothing I-" Kazume just stopped talking as if something suddenly interrupted her. Heihachi touched her left arm and he felt the tension there.

"You don't have to lie," Heihachi comforted. "I want to know." Heihachi said softly. He couldn't read her mind but, her fear was readable in her body language.

"Heihachi…"

Suddenly it was clear to Heihachi, her feelings were readable, her fear was directed to the panty, which was right beside her and Heihachi. It was the fear of someone as well, with sudden rage Heihachi's fist went flying through the door and groped around inside, Kazume jumped and ran out of the room but, Heihachi's hand kept searching until he grabbed the throat of the man hiding in the pantry and pulled him clean through the door.

The young man was no older than fifteen years old, he yelled for his life as Heihachi lifted him to eye level.

"Who are you!?" Heihachi growled. The young man's legs flailed like dying fish.

"Oh my God you're Heihachi Mishima!" The young man screamed loudly, Heihachi tossed him to the floor, the boy pushed himself back onto a cabinet and began crying. Heihachi cornered him.

"WHO ARE YOU?!" Heihachi yelled; the boy put his hands up defensively and shook his head.

"I'm so sorry," he pleaded. "I was just trying to make some money, I didn't know they were sending me to Heihachi Mishima's place!" The boy began crying more profusely.

"Who sent you here boy?" Heihachi growled deeply.

"Some man, he just came up to me," He took a breath. "told me that if I followed your wife home and scared her he'd pay me a lot of cash." The boy explained.

"Who do you work for?" Heihachi demanded. "The Yakuza?"

"What?" the boy answered shocked. "No, I'm just in a little gang, the switchblades."

"You don't know who sent you here?" Heihachi asked, he leaned closer to the boy, in his eyes he could see the truth, this wasn't some hardened criminal, he was only a boy.

"He didn't give me a name, he just promised me money." The boy was beginning to break down.

"What did he send you here to do?" Heihachi asked more calmly, the boy looked into his eyes, he begged in them, he wanted mercy.

"I swear all I was supposed to do was scare your wife then pop out with a gun and scare you and run away," The boy detailed. "but the gun isn't even loaded and when I saw it was you I couldn't do it, I swear I'm telling the truth I wasn't going to hurt anyone!" He calmed a little looking into Heihachi's stone gaze, Heihachi could see only truth in his eyes, Heihachi felt conflicted, someone had used this kid to send Heihachi a message.

"How was the money going to get transferred?" Heihachi propped the boy up to his feet and continued to look deep in his eyes.

"It was just supposed to be transferred into an account." Heihachi frowned, no such transfer was going to be made more than likely.

"There's no chance of you meeting this man again?" Heihachi asked.

"No."

Heihachi thought for a moment, this was exactly the kind of thing he wanted to avoid, attacks against his wife. Whoever had hired this kid didn't intend for the kid to get away, there was going to be no way of tracking it back. Whoever set this up wanted Heihachi to know that they could touch him and the people he cared about but, Heihachi couldn't do it back. For once in his life Heihachi felt somewhat helpless, not for himself but, for Kazume, what if they had sent someone serious and not this boy, Kazume could have been hurt or worse.

"Please Mr. Mishima, you have to believe me!" the boy begged, Heihachi snapped out of his thoughts and back to the boy, he looked him up and down.

"I know you're telling the truth," Heihachi said. "But you must never go back to this 'gang' The people who sent you here have no intention of paying you any money, and probably want to kill you." Heihachi explained, the boys eyes widen at the sudden weight of the situation.

"Kill me?" The boy murmured.

"You must also tell no one about my living here," Heihachi suddenly grabbed the boys face to make sure he was looking him in the eye. "If you do tell anyone about my apartment here, I find out and I will find you and I won't be as merciless as I am going to be right now."

"I swear to God, I won't tell anyone!" The boy screeched. Heihachi then let the boy go and looked away from him.

"Leave," Heihachi said quietly as he tried to center himself and refocus his mind, the boy seemed confused and stood there for a moment unsure of what to do. "LEAVE!" Heihachi shouted and the boy ran out the kitchen, into the living room and out the front door.

For a few minutes Heihachi stood over the kitchen sink thinking and trying to settle his mind into a meditative state. Fear was an opponent that could always be defeated but, if it was allowed to gain the upper hand it could hinder ones ability to function. Heihachi felt genuine fear for the first time in his adult life, fear for his wife and that fear was gripping his mind. He found himself unable to calm and thusly unable to transfer into his meditation. Heihachi turned the water on and tossed some of the coolness onto his face before running his hair through his hair, down his neck, to his jaw and onto his eyes.

After calming himself slightly he walked slowly out of the kitchen and into the bedroom, there Kazume sat on the bed crying slightly, her knees held to her chest, she looked at her husband in the doorway who stared back at her. Heihachi walked in and crawled onto the bed and opened his arms. Kazume folded into the arms and cried more, Heihachi closed them around her and rocked slowly, the sun set, the deep yellow became orange, the orange became a majestic purple and the purple faded to black but, all the while he rocked slowly and didn't say a word, he focused but, this time one something he hadn't focused on before, he focused strongly, deeply, intently on keeping the tears he felt from leaving his eyes.

After the incident Heihachi felt it was important to go back to doing the things he used to, namely; visiting his father. Though he made the decision early on it took him three months to make his promise come true. Work at the Zaibatsu and smoothing things over with Kazume kept most of his time occupied, though he tried to lessen his time at the Zaibatsu there seemed to be more and more work to be done at the Zaibatsu, so much work that he came to the realization that leaving the company any time soon wouldn't be the best of business decisions. It annoyed him that his plan to assimilate into the life of a commoner would be put on hold by the demands of his international family heirloom. Still however, it felt good to work under such stress, even when he didn't see Jinpachi he felt close to him when he was working there. Most days he would sit in his office and read over reports that needed his signature or approval, other days he was looking into specific details of how the company's products were being made or where exactly the company's money was going and those were all uninteresting, what he really enjoyed was going to meetings and seeing the people he was involved with, the goal of the Zaibatsu was to, eventually, be in every major company filtering in products needed to make them stronger. Heihachi's anti-crime initiative was only his personal vendetta against the criminal underworld but, he intended to move it with the exploits of the Zaibatsu. He knew it was foolish to think that he could stop all crime but, the Zaibatsu had already made great progress within Asia, it was only a matter of time before someone, if not him, could move the same progress across Asia to Europe and beyond.

Though the company predated Jinpachi Mishima it was more his company than anyone else. Before him it was a small company struggling to stay afloat but, when he took over he managed to elevate it to the multinational super conglomerate it was today. The Zaibatsu consisted of two parts the Zaibatsu, which was the heart of all activities, and the Mishima Financial Empire, which financed other companies and their endeavors with a small margin of ownership to the Zaibatsu. The Zaibatsu didn't create any of the products it put its name on, something Heihachi didn't agree with, instead it paid other companies to do it, Jinpachi maintained that this relationship with other companies was a fruitful one and Heihachi agreed but, maintained that at some point the Zaibatsu should create its own products. The Financial Empire was where Heihachi worked most often, all money transfers were put through directly by Heihachi or Jinpachi, there was a series of checks that always came up and each quarter Heihachi or Jinpachi signed them all, whenever a new company was added a screening process had to be completed before the issuing of money.

It became mundane but, Jinpachi never seemed to grow tired of it, he always had the same vigor as he always did, this was one of the reasons why Heihachi wished to visit his father, to gain insight on how to not be tired of the Zaibatsu as well as to see how his father was doing living alone. He couldn't have picked a worse day to go either, it was raining torrentially and Heihachi had no tolerance for rain, Jinpachi was a fan of it, he insisted the it was the cleansing of the world, that it kept things fresh and reinstituted life in dead things but, Heihachi found it to be nothing more than a nuisance, still he had promised himself _this_ day to visit Jinpachi and world never forgive himself if he didn't actually go. So he drove to the edge of the Gardens, which were seven miles from the living spaces of Hon-Maru and walked the rest of the way. The smell of wet nature was refreshing and the only part of rain Heihachi was actually fond of. The smell was one that was deeply ingrained in his memory of his childhood, it made him feel small again, protected by ignorance, he walked slowly and admired the Gardens. They were well kept, a portion of it was simply an untouched forest that Heihachi's grandfather had purchased when he was young, the other portion was a large series of gardens that showcased many different species of botanic life, created by Heihachi's grandmother, one of the finest gardens in the world. Jinrei 'lived' there, setting up a small shack for himself and a meditation space. Animals sometimes roamed in and out of the gardens being that the forest portion of the grounds was not fenced off from the actual non-Mishima forest. The workers that tended to the space didn't seem to mind the occasional deer or two and some insisted there were a small family of bears that lived somewhere on the grounds. None of this concerned Heihachi much though, bears and deer weren't scary to him, he had been raised around animal life and felt sometimes closer to them than he did some of the people he worked with.

Heihachi knew the gardens like the back of his hand, Hon-Maru was located in the center of the forest, Jinpachi explained it was built there originally by a settler being pursued by the law, he then carved the forest in a way that misdirected travelers into going in a circle around the small compound. Before the settler died he apparently gave the property to a researcher he met in his travels, the researching must have been a Mishima, because since then the property was passed down until now.

Heihachi passed through a familiar row of trees and within moments passed into the boundaries of the small compound. Slightly in the distance was Jinpachi's hut, in the window he could see the fire inside was softly crackling, Heihachi smiled to himself, the smell of the burning wood filled his senses and he felt comfortable. With quickness but, not running Heihachi made his way to the hut and walked in.

Sitting with his back to the door Jinpachi rested in a meditative state, legs crossed and arms resting on them, Heihachi suddenly felt embarrassed about rushing in unannounced, though he knew his father was a master of meditation, it was always strange and scary to be the person to possibly break that concentration. Quietly, to the point where Heihachi watched his the level of his breathing, Heihachi stood waiting for his father to come out of his meditative state, in his mind he tried to reach out as well to go slightly into the same state but, his mind wasn't ready to concentrate, there were things he wanted to say to his father and his mind was already focused on how to say them to maximize their effect. Outside thunder bellowed with a low register that shook the ground, the sound of the rain hitting the trees filled the hut like a million tiny ants giving applause to mother nature's show of power.

The wait was beginning to make Heihachi somewhat uncomfortable usually, his father didn't wait this long to speak to him, Heihachi now felt as if he had interrupted something, he shifted his weight and that's when Jinpachi stood.

"I apologize for interrupting, I wasn't aware-" Heihachi stopped, there wasn't an excuse, he simply was not aware. Jinpachi said nothing and kept his back towards Heihachi, Heihachi did no more to try and ease the uncomfortable feeling,.

Without any warning Jinpachi's foot came crashing into Heihachi's chest, his entire skeleton shook in the wake of the attack. Heihachi body lifted off the ground like a feather and flew through the door into the rain before smashing into a tree trunk. The cool rain fell down on Heihachi's face, the shock of the attack left him bewildered for a long moment, he couldn't process what happened, the pain was excruciating and the sudden sensation of rain made his senses recoil. Directly ahead of him he could see Jinpachi standing in the doorway of the small shack, obscured by the cloak of night, momentarily illuminated by the sharp edge of lightening. He could see in his father's eyes something he had never seen before, though it didn't feel new, it was always there just dormant, a glow of sorts, an emptiness, a red obstruction like a new set of eyes in front of Jinpachi's own. Heihachi knew that before him stood his father's body but, not his mind, he knew the curse had taken over and now whatever was within Jinpachi was after Heihachi now.

For a man of his size Jinpachi was incredibly lithe, with remarkable grace Jinpachi jumped off the ground with one leg and soared through the air like a elegant bird centered on its prey, his left leg reared back for the deadly strike. Finally coming to fully Heihachi jumped out of the way just as the patriarch's kick snapped through the tree like a weapon no mortal could ever conceive. The rain came down harder now, in a small clearing Heihachi stood only feet away from his father, he stood in ready battle stance but, his mind was anything but. Though Heihachi was confident in his power this was not some thug, this was Jinpachi Mishima this was the man who single handedly trained him, Heihachi could feel the power emanating from his father but, this wasn't the same power he felt before this was insidious, he could feel the calculating nature of this beast even now it plotted to destroy him.

What was he to do? He had come here to deliver news to his father not to kill him, in his mind he reiterated the wish for Jinpachi to come through, he kept his hands up ready to embrace attack but, his mind was weak and almost totally defenseless. Jinpachi darted forward and his son stiffened to fight. A pair of punches came like fist size rockets but, Heihachi was able to dodge the first and deflect the second, without pause though a kick came up from the ground with a sharp snap like lightening itself. Heihachi put up his arms in defense but, the kick was more powerful than the might of his arms, it felt as if his arms were being split from the middle and again his body lifted off the ground, it left him momentarily defenseless and that was all Jinpachi needed, attacks came so fast Heihachi couldn't even tell what they were. A punch to the face sent his body spinning in the air before landing face first in the recently created mud. Heihachi tried to keep his mind together in order to protect himself and possibly find a solution to his current problem. Jinpachi's massive foot slammed down towards Heihachi, landing harmlessly in the mud away from his son who rolled out the way. Heihachi's fist slammed into the back of Jinpachi calf, the sudden loss of balance caused Jinpachi to slip in the mud and fall over on his back. Heihachi was up quick and stood over his father ready to attack but, the quickness of the powerful man was beyond that of his son, Heihachi wasn't quick enough and Jinpachi's foot sent him flying back into the trees.

The lightening flashed again and Heihachi was just in time to see Jinpachi was only few feet away from him and already commencing another round of attacks. Jinpachi tried to sweep his feet with a kick but, Heihachi countered the attack with a jumping kick, still though, he was too slow before the kick could extend fully Jinpachi took his opened palm and slapped down on the foot, causing Heihachi to fall forward in the air towards Jinpachi. As he fell Jinpachi precisely grabbed Heihachi by the throat and applied the most restricting pressure. Jinpachi held his son close and Heihachi could see the red glow in his eyes, Jinpachi reared back and his head came careening into Heihachi's. The head butt echoed with pain from the crown of his head, exploded from his temples, reverberated down to his jaw and the imploded back all the way up. Again Heihachi was in the mud looking up at his father who was again ready to destroy him. Jinpachi picked him up like a toy and threw him into a tree, Heihachi braced the pain and knew instantly his father had made a critical mistake. The excess energy it took to throw him had Jinpachi momentarily in recuperation, it was all Heihachi needed, with speed and a determination he had never felt before Heihachi cut through the rain like a sword through the finest veil. His fist slammed into Jinpachi's jaw with so much might that Jinpachi recoiled, another punch landed in Jinpachi's left gut causing him to lean over to that side, susceptible to the kick that came next knocking Jinpachi to the ground. Heihachi was quick and got over his father and braced for the final attack, the punch that would end his father's life. Heihachi reared his arm back ready to release.

"Mishima,!" Jinpachi suddenly spoke. "Wait!" he exclaimed, Heihachi hesitated he could see the red glow had vanished from his eyes, the rain fell on the both of them as they stood there silent for what seemed to be forever, the sounds of their labored breath was drowned by the rain. Heihachi would see whatever had taken over his father had passed, Heihachi let his father go and fall into the mud before falling back into the mud in a seated position and gave a labored sigh.

"You did Well." Jinpachi nodded at his son, who looked frustrated.

"I wouldn't have killed you," Heihachi admitted. "I would have hesitated regardless." Jinpachi nodded and began to stand, clearly showing pain in his body as he did so.

"Yet you drove fear into the hear of the beast," Jinpachi patted his chest with a fist. "So much so it fled from my mind." Jinpachi concluded, Heihachi looked up at his father without getting up from the mud. He stood there like a great statue, much different than the look he had only had seconds ago, in his heart he felt relieved.

"You hit me pretty hard." Heihachi spoke tersely. Jinpachi chuckled loudly.

"I could say the same for you," He rubbed his jaw. "I don't recall teaching you that particular attack." Jinpachi said.

"Thank Jinrei"

"I should have known," Jinpachi laughed. "That old man has to train everyone he sees in at least one technique."

"Father," Heihachi looked away, his hand clutched the mud under him. "I need to know what it is." Heihachi explained. Jinpachi sighed and held his hands on his hips looking up at the sky.

"It's complicated," Jinpachi dismissed. "But, there are books here in my personal study that will teach you about it." Heihachi shook his head.

"Father, I _need_ to know." Heihachi plead, Jinpachi was quiet unable to look into his eyes.

"I am still unable to trace back exactly how the curse was put on our family," Jinpachi started, he looked at his son. "But, ever since it was bestowed upon the Mishima each son of the Mishima has been plagued with a demon attempting to take control of his body and mind," Jinpachi took a deep breath, his actions spoke as loud as his words, this was something he hadn't spoke about in a long time. "Each generation it gets more powerful, it attempts to reinsert itself into our world using the power of the Mishima as a vessel, this is probably why the Mishima have not have a female offspring in many generations. It controls us it manipulates us to it's bidding. It is in search of the most powerful being to control in order to achieve domination," Heihachi watched his father's face, there was guilt there and something else. "But each generation it fails to reassemble it's own body and looks to the next son as the possible person to reestablish its full power. That was until you were born, it was remarkable, I knew from the very moment you were born you lacked the curse, it does not flow through your blood at all, somehow before you were born you managed to resist the beast. Because of that the demon is angered, you clearly are the most powerful of the Mishima to date and it needs you to return to this world but, even more so it knows you can destroy it. It is desperate but, patient. More than anything it wants you dead." Jinpachi explained, Heihachi nodded.

"What's it called?" Heihachi asked, Jinpachi looked into his son's eyes.

"I haven't said its name in years," Jinpachi admitted. "Devil, simply Devil." Jinpachi revealed. Heihachi stood up in the mud and sighed.

"This has been," Heihachi paused. "enlightening to say the least." Heihachi began to limp away.

"Where are you going?" Jinpachi asked. "You came here to tell me something." Jinpachi mentioned.

"It's no longer important." Heihachi explained.

"You are damaged," Jinpachi explained. "I can teach you a technique that'll help heal your wounds." Jinpachi explained, the words were a demand and Heihachi knew that. He turned to his father and nodded.

The two men limped their way back to the hut where Jinpachi explained that meditation could also help Heihachi heal superficial wounds all over his body, he also gave Heihachi a book that detailed the technique. Heihachi took it and looked forward to learning the technique.

"There's something else I need to give you Mishima." Jinpachi limped out of sight and came back not long after with something wrapped loosely on his arm, he sat on his knees in front of the fire and looked his son in the eyes.

"I never told you much about your grandfather but, there's something I want to share something about him," Jinpachi explained, Heihachi nodded quietly, clearing his mind beginning the first stages of his new healing meditation. "Your grandfather was a cruel but, fair man. He wasn't villainous but, when something or someone crossed him he destroyed it without a thought. The Zaibatsu was nothing but, a small company but, he ruled it like a dynasty. His biggest priority though was power, power of his fist and the Mishima style of fighting, he crafted the style into what I taught you. He was a brilliant man in his fighting but, his mind wasn't as strong and so he lost his battle with 'Devil' early on. Before then he gave me this," Jinpachi unfolded the item in front of Heihachi and revealed a black Gi. He held it up, it was sleeveless and adorned with nothing on the front but a roaring tiger's face on the back, a set of leg garments accompanied it and a red belt, it was well used but, still strong looking. "When you were young, I used to wear this to train but, I retired it when the Zaibatsu grew in power, now, my son, I give it to you." Jinpachi handed the black Gi over to Heihachi who took it.

"Thank you father." Heihachi sincerely spoke.

"There is one other thing," Jinpachi added. "The Zaibatsu."

"What about it?" Heihachi asked.

"I'm surrendering it over to you." Jinpachi explained, Heihachi's face opened with shock.

"Father…" Heihachi was at a lost for words.

"This lost of control has shown me that the Zaibatsu is in danger under my control," Jinpachi explained. "You _must_ take control of the company." Heihachi sighed, this was the last thing he expected today, this wasn't at all what he wanted to hear.

"I must accept," Heihachi said quietly. "Under one condition." He added.

"What is that?" Jinpachi looked curiously to his son.

"People must think I took the Zaibatsu from you," Heihachi explained. "in a hostile way." Jinpachi stroked his beard.

"Fine," He agreed. "but why?"

"Our enemies are plentiful, we must used the fear they've tired to instill in me against them," Heihachi detailed. "If they're convinced that I was willing to betray you they will not doubt that I will be as merciless to them, this will hold them at bay for some time." Heihachi explained.

"Yes," Jinpachi agreed. "An image of ruthlessness will make them react with fear, possibly causing them to back down or-"

"Critically make a mistake." Heihachi finished for his father. Jinpachi smiled wide at his son.

"You have grown to be a better man than I could have ever hoped for," Jinpachi grabbed Heihachi's shoulder and squeezed hard, not with force but, of admiration. "The Zaibatsu will be in perfect hands."

In the following weeks Heihachi assumed control of the Mishima Zaibatsu in total, the work grew intensely but, despite his original feelings about it Heihachi felt a sense of pride in his new control. His first order of business was starting a new branch of the Zaibatsu. It was not without it's opposition but, the Mishima Zaibatsu and the Mishima Financial Empire was joined by Mishima Heavy Industries, a new branch dedicated to the manufacturing of Mishima owned and other companies products. This allowed for the Financial empire to now spend money on the Zaibatsu directly resulting in the loss of no money for those endeavors, they still financed other companies products. Heavy industries was an expensive creation and many on the board felt it was going to bankrupt the, newly named, Mishima Conglomerate. Heihachi was unapologetic about the whole thing however, there was no negotiating the creation and the use of Mishima heavy industries. Within a month Heihachi was settled in to his office, again, at the downtown building, he struggled between the conglomerate life and his home life because he lacked a personal assistant to help him with his work, he spent long hours at the Zaibatsu headquarters from early in the morning and sometimes well into the next day.

One day whilst working in his office alone he was visited by Wang Jinrei, Wang was a strange site inside the building, he came up on the elevator and entered the office and walked slowly to Heihachi's desk.

"Jinrei," Heihachi exclaimed. "It's a surprise to see you" Jinrei nodded and sat down in the chair opposite Heihachi. Heihachi smiled with his spectacles and shook Jinrei's hand, who drew it back after the conclusion of the handshake and shook it in pain.

"You're getting stronger by the second." Jinrei said quietly but, loud enough to hear.

"Really?" Heihachi asked. "I barely have any time to train now that I've inherited this." He gestured to the room, meaning the Zaibatsu.

"Yes, I can imagine," Jinrei nodded. "I was surprised to hear of your hostile take over" Jinrei explained, Heihachi smiled and shook his head.

"It's not what it sounds like, I-" He began.

"Oh, I know," Jinrei revealed. "I talked to your father about what happened that night" Jinrei explained.

"Of course" Heihachi nodded, Jinrei smiled weakly.

"That's what I came to talk to you about." Jinrei sighed, Heihachi leaned back in his chair, Jinrei's attitude seemed odd.

"I'm sure he's better at detailing those kind of events better than I am." Heihachi admitted.

"No, no," Jinrei shook his head. "It's more about your father and your grandfather." Heihachi sat up in attention and took his glasses off.

"What's wrong Jinrei?" Heihachi asked.

"I know Jinpachi gave you his Gi, and I know that's about all he told you of your grandfather," Jinrei explained.

"He told me he was cruel and powerful." Heihachi felt like a child again, something about this conversation, illuminating things of his heritage he never knew, Jinrei chuckled softly.

"Two words that don't do justice to either of their intended qualities," Jinrei explained. "Your Grandfather, Jinrachi," It was the first time Heihachi had ever heard his name, it came like a shot in the dark against his chest and the walls of his mind, suddenly this man existed, he wasn't some imaginary character in Heihachi's mind anymore. "Was of amazing power, the slightest touch from this man could send a group of men flying in fear and he was a firm believer in right and wrong and no in-between. He rewarded good work with amazing blessings and treachery and greed with the hardest form of punishment he could conceive. Failure wasn't an option for Jinrachi, he focused on making the Zaibatsu a viable company but, his true focus was in his training. Jinpachi will never say it aloud but, he knows Jinrachi was the most powerful of Mishima, even more powerful than him. Because of this," Jinrei paused for a second, something so slight but, Heihachi noticed. "Devil focused on Jinrachi. His mastery of training in the martial arts was not met to match with his spiritual education. His mind wasn't powerful enough to resist Devil and he lost control of himself at an early age. Jinpachi was only eighteen then, and I was seventeen, I left him after training together and the next day we were supposed to continue our training," Jinrei sighed and looked out the window as if watching the memory in the window. "The next day Jinpachi didn't arrive at our meeting place on time, I could sense something was disturbed around the Mishima Gardens, so I decided to investigate, in fear that Jinpachi, my best friend, might be in danger. I found your father in the woods only a few feet from Jinrachi's dead body, Jinpachi was unconscious and my family nursed him to a reasonable amount of health. When he came to he explained he was attacked by Jinrachi late that night and was forced to kill him and that before he died, Jinrachi gave him an old journal that explained the curse in detail and his Gi. Jinrachi explained Jinpachi was already cursed and that spiritual education of his mind was the only thing that could keep the Devil gene under control, this is why he insist you to read," Jinrei continued. "With no family, Jinpachi and I enlisted in the armed forces and joined the war, we lost contact when our battalions were separated but, regained contact many years later," Jinrei laughed. "he hadn't changed at all, except he had lost most of his hair, another trait that runs in your family, and was as big as a house!" Jinrei detailed. "He had started the Zaibatsu up from scratch and needed someone to help him with small odds and ends, and I had just left my job working with Leilong as a cop so I decided it would be nice to catch up with an old friend. We reestablished our friendship and before I knew it things were back to the way they were, we trained both physically and mentally, I had become heavily involved in the teachings of Taoism and Jinpachi was excited to learn anything about any religion or spiritual power, plus he had that surplus of Mishima journals in Hon-Maru, anyway, you were born some years later and he feared he had passed the curse onto you and that he would react to you like his father did to him, it was his biggest fear and one night, after training we made a pact," Jinrei nodded and looked back at Heihachi. "We promised to train you as best as we _both_ could, so that you would be able to stop Jinpachi if he ever lost control but furthermore, I promised Jinpachi if he lost control before you were ready or if some reason you were unable to stop him, that I would end his life, and that brings me to my point." Jinrei shifted in his chair.

"Yes?" Heihachi listened intently, he hadn't heard this story before.

"Jinpachi mentioned to me that you hesitated," Jinrei explained. "I can understand that, you're only twenty-five years old, the burden of killing your own father is too heavy for you to achieve right now but, its what _has_ to be done. I am older and I have seen many friends come and go, and as much as it would pain me to kill my best friend I know I will have to do it," Jinrei spoke confidently. "So I came here to tell you two things, I understand why you did what you did and I want you to understand that I am your friend and if you fail to kill Jinpachi when he loses all control I will _not_ hesitate." Jinrei explained.

"I see," Heihachi spoke finally. "I understand what you are saying."

"Good, I don't want you to resent me," Jinrei explained further. "If I have to kill Jinpachi I need you to understand."

"I will," Heihachi said. "but it won't happen, Jinrei is more powerful than he gives himself credit for, we will find an answer to this curse before anything further happens." Heihachi confidently stated. Jinrei laughed out loud.

"I hope that's true," He said. "Well, that's all I wanted to say, this old man has to occupy himself with something, this office air is making my sinuses act up." Jinrei stood and slowly walked out the office.

After his conversation with Jinrei Heihachi wasn't able to concentrate on work, so he made the choice to go home. Heihachi suddenly felt happy on his way back home, it would be nice to surprise Kazume early in the day. The road they lived on was sunny and cars drove slowly by and he waited for them to part before going upstairs.

Heihachi opened the door and announced his entrance but, there was no answer, he walked into the bed room and there was Kazume, crying on the bed, her makeup was strewn down her cheeks. She looked up shocked to see Heihachi, behind the glassy gloss of tears was surprise.

"Kazume what's wrong?!" Heihachi asked, he looked around remember the last time he had seen her this way, he went to the closet.

"No, there's no one here." Kazume spoke fragilely, Heihachi moved closer to the bed.

"Then what's wrong?" Heihachi asked pleading to her, she cried harder, and coughed.

"Heihachi," she looked at him and shook her head. "I'm so sorry." She cried harder.

"Sorry?" Heihachi was utterly confused, there was no clarity whatsoever. "What are you sorry for, did you do something?"

"I," Kazume began. "I'm so sorry"

"Kazume what?" Heihachi begged, he felt his heart sink, to see her this way was the most pain he had ever felt. "Did you see another man?" He asked.

"No!" Kazume shouted in objection, the tone of her voice shouted back at his, apparently, absurd suggestion.

"Then what is wrong?" Heihachi leaned on the bed and touched her forehead.

"Heihachi I," She paused and looked into his eyes, the tears stopped briefly to collect. Heihachi ran his hand through her hair, he wanted to speak but, her tears were stifling, he wanted to tell her that no matter what it was it was going to be ok, that he was so in love with her that there was nothing she could have possibly have done that would convince him to think otherwise. He wanted to shake her and tell her that she was crying for no reason, that there was no reason for her to cry with him because it's what he wanted the least out of her life. That nothing she could do warranted this reaction, that when she cried each tear pierced through his hear like a poison tipped arrow, that every ounce of sorrow she felt was a gallon of anguish he endured.

"Say it Kazume." Heihachi held his head down unable to look at her in sadness anymore.

"Heihachi, I'm pregnant."


	3. 26 Years Before Tekken I

The sound of Kazume's screams filled the delivery room like gushing water in a small bucket. It overflowed, ran over and poured itself outside. The doctor and two nurses attended to her with their green scrubs, Heihachi, also in green scrubs, stood over his wife and patted the sweat from her brow and moved the hair out her eyes. She cried and he consoled telling her it was almost over but, it seemed endless, yet she continued stronger pushing and crying. The doctor called out orders to the nurses and performed his duty, Heihachi tried to stay out of the way but, Kazume's screams never ended and he didn't seem to be helping at all. Outside the room Jinpachi Mishima sat in the tiny waiting chairs in a suit with his hands clenched together in a fist waiting for the birth of his grandchild.

Jinpachi was disappointed but, not surprised that Kazume was pregnant, Jinpachi didn't act as he thought he would, he took the information in stride and welcomed his grandchild. The idea of an abortion was out of the question as it felt wrong and was dangerous to Kazume's health and Heihachi wasn't prepared to put her in danger. It was clear after only a few weeks that unless Kazume suffered a miscarriage the next Mishima was going to be born. Of course this meant the curse was going to be an issue but, as Jinpachi read more about it the more comfortable he became with the idea of a grandson. It was possible that Heihachi had broken the chain, since he was the first to be born without it but, there were no guarantees. When he had gotten the news that Kazume had gone into labor he rushed to be with his son but, when he caught up with Heihachi he seemed cold and distant. Kazume, though in pain, was the only comfort Jinpachi experienced

"For a woman in great pain you look fairly beautiful." Jinpachi said to her.

"Beauty, that's what got me here in the first place!" she attempted a feeble laugh and was wheeled off with his son who hadn't said anymore than issue a slight greeting to him when they arrived at the hospital.

And now they both sat in the room away from him, he didn't know what was happening and he centered his mind to be calm but, even within himself he felt something nagging. The birth of another Mishima was both exciting and scary. Several doctors passed by him and each time they did he hoped that they would speak to him, deliver news of the situation but, alas they didn't; the air around him was still and silent, the lights seemed dim, his breath was contained in a small area around him, he was encased in a seal only a few inches from his face, a prison of thought.

Heihachi wiped more sweat from Kazume's brow and smiled weakly at his wife, she cried and her faced strained as she tried birth the child she felt guilty for having incubated.

"Heihachi," she spoke, Heihachi shook his head.

"Don't try to speak Kazume." He offered to her softly. The doctor suddenly sprung into some action.

"Here comes the child!" he called out, the nurses all ran to help deliver the child, Kazume squeezed his hand as hard as she could but, Heihachi felt nothing really from her small hand but, whatever was missing from the grip was made up in the pain in her eyes. Heihachi wanted to beg her to stop but, he knew she was in pain and he wanted to stay strong for her so she could see that there was nothing she should fear or be hurt from when he was around. She pushed with desperateness and her body recoiled after each one worse, her whole body shook, the blood in her grip on his pumped and he could feel it on his palm.

"That's good Kazume, keep pushing the baby is almost here." The doctor directed.

"Good Kazume, you're doing so well," Heihachi cooed. "I love you so much." Kazume paused from pushing and looked into his eyes, his words had hit her with happiness, through the gems of her teary eyes he could see such happiness, he smiled at her and kissed her eyebrow, and she began to push again, crying even more in the pain, she screamed loudly and the doctor gave an elated laugh and announced the crowing of the child and for her to keep pushing. Kazume obeyed and squeezed Heihachi's hand.

She cried

And cried

And cried

And cried.

And there was nothing he could do but, coo at her and tell her everything was going to be alright and then her crying stopped and another began. Her teary eyes fell on the doctor holding the newborn child.

"It's a boy!" the doctor exclaimed, Kazume's face lit up at the sight of her son, the doctor passed the child over to Heihachi

"Heihachi," Kazume spoke. "The promise."

Heihachi held his son in his arms and looked into his eyes. He looked just like Jinpachi, his cried filled the room but, they were like distant echoes as he watched _his_ son in front of him. He smiled, behind him Jinpachi came in and quietly gasped at the sight of his grandson.

"He looks just like you, father." Heihachi stumbled to say. He turned to Kazume to let her see but, on the bed she laid absolutely still, the distant sound of the room suddenly came crashing back into the forefront of his mind. The doctor screamed, the nurses scrambled. Almost as if he was seeing it in slow motion he saw his wife slipping away, the doctor stood for a moment, his silence admitted there was nothing he could do. The sound of a flat line cut through the room like a razor.

The nurse walked to Heihachi obstructing his view right after the doctor gave him the look he dreaded. She moved slightly and the doctor was there in front of him, he shook his head slowly.

"I'm sorry Mr. Mishima-" Heihachi flinched, he looked past the man at his wife, his mind refused to believe it but, his senses knew she was gone. Kazume was dead in front of him, his mind was numb but, he looked down at the child she had just bared and knew the curse lived on within the newborn and he knew the curse had finally taken its first victim in Heihachi's life. Heihachi looked at his son with totally different eyes than only a few seconds ago, in the crying babies face he saw nothing, the curse of devil lived on within it.

Suddenly he was back in the room with the executives of the Mishima Zaibatsu and Genetic Cooperation, to his right Kazume took notes, then back in the hospital room. He shook, involuntarily, Jinpachi behind him, he could sense the apprehension in the man but, he also felt the calm, he was more in control than Heihachi was, so he passed the newborn to the large man. His eyes met his father's eyes who had the greatest empathy in them, and vice versa Jinpachi saw the deepest pain.

"Heihachi-" Jinpachi started but, Heihachi quickly shook his head and took a deep breath before heading to the door.

"Wait, Mr. Mishima!" one of the nurses called, Heihachi spun to meet her gaze. "What will you name your son?" a deflation came over Heihachi, hope snuffed out in an instant.

'_Heihachi…the Promise'_

That's what she said, the promise they made, that her son would be named after her. Heihachi's mind raced, he couldn't remember the name but, it was simple math, her name Kazume, he would use the beginning since his family name always ended with the kanji that designated 'achi' 'hachi' or 'ya'. The first of her name and the ending of his family Kanji resulted in:

"Mishima, Kazuya"


	4. 21 Years Before Tekken I

Each face around the table in the boardroom of the Mishima Zaibatsu looked weary and disappointed. The sun beamed into the large glass windows that took up the entire wall on the left side. Every so often a cloud would pass by casting a shadow over the men's faces but, their expression didn't change at all. At the head of the table Heihachi Mishima looked equally unenthused as the rest of the board but, this time Heihachi was the one on the defense of the other men. For two hours they sat in the office bickering with Mishima about the fate of the conglomerate.

"Mr. Mishima," one of the board members sighed loudly. He gestured at the folder in front of Heihachi Mishima. "The report tells it all, Heavy Industries is hemorrhaging money out of this company, we know you have plans for this branch of the Zaibatsu but, at this time we're afraid it might bankrupt the Financial Empire" Heihachi nodded and looked through the papers in the folder quickly before looking back at the board.

"I know that's how you feel," Heihachi started. "but with the completion of this program countries all over the world will be bidding for our services. This is the program that will push the Zaibatsu over the edge!" Heihachi exclaimed, the same board member shook his head, while the others talked under their breath quietly to each other.

Which edge though Mishima?," The man asked, he looked around to see the supporting nods of his comrades. "I don't want to offend you Heihachi but, some of us have been with this company since before you were born. We know your father has bred you to be the leader of this company but, this may not be the right _time_ for Heavy Industries. We've just started to settle in with the Chinese government fully and the new word is that the Japanese government may be warming up to us too, this would be a terrible time to take such risk." The board member explained. Heihachi listened intently and took a moment before issuing an answer.

"Gentlemen, I know I haven't been the most fair of bosses since I took over for my father but, it's only because this dream my father had is beyond the company we have now. We've managed to secure on of the worlds most renown scientist in robotics and hydraulics to work on this program with us. You're right the risk is great but, imagine what the prize of success would be. Countries would be tripping over themselves to pay us for our services to help curb sector and international issues. Within ten years of completion the JACK program could go global making the Zaibatsu the number one source of military commandos in the world and we would push our dream of a less tense world with our support." Heihachi explained, the board members seemed to ease to the idea slightly.

"We know Heihachi but, Abel is fickle at best," Another board member, wrinkled on his brow both by natural aging and staunch disagreement. "We've already had to make serious redirections to our staff just to make him comfortable." The other board members made their disapproval of the situation noted with vocal grunts.

"I know and this is an issue I'm going to deal with personally. Abel is the best there is and we need him but, this is a Mishima run company, he won't be running us. That being said, his support is vital to the success of this project and this company. Need I remind you of the plans I found in that compound some six years ago? Someone had already built a mock-up of our JACK solider." Heihachi explained.

"We know but-"

"Then you know someone finds that this project is important, our competition is how we should be gauging our efforts, and if we play it safe it may result in being behind." Heihachi continued.

"The risk may be too big, we might not have the money." Heihachi's frustration clearly had hit its tipping point, he closed the file and tossed it to the middle of the table.

"Then you'll have to establish a vote of no confidence" Heihachi suggested, several of the board members groaned and the more vocal one shook his head emphatically.

"Mishima none of us want you to be removed from the company we simply want you to _listen_ to us sometime." His hands reached out to Heihachi pleading.

"I listen to everything you say but, Heavy Industries isn't a debate, the only way to close it down is to remove me from this office. I wish I could allow you see the vision I see gentlemen." Heihachi explained, the collective of the men sighed again and began to close their files.

"Well I don't think anyone here is prepared to issue that drastic of a request, I assume this meeting is over then?" The wrinkled board member asked, Heihachi nodded and the man began to pick his papers up and offered a slight smile to Heihachi. "Don't be too happy Heihachi, when the investors hear about this they're going to be less than happy. We'll be back here soon and next time we'll have to be more forceful." He warned, Heihachi stood up and shook his hand.

"I understand but, someday soon we will be reaping the benefits of this JACK program I promise."

The board members left and Heihachi stayed in the room for a few minutes after their departure before picking up his papers and leaving as well. He took the elevator to the top floor of the Mishima Zaibatsu headquarters, a penthouse that had been converted into a working office for himself. When the elevator opened he walked quickly passed the secretary's desk, he didn't look at it, he didn't acknowledge it. He never did anymore.

The years following Kazume's death were slow, Heihachi vanished for several days before emerging from the wilderness and going back to work. He had found resolve in trying to champion the JACK program and all his efforts were instantly redirected into that. Jinpachi had taken the child home and Heihachi didn't see the newborn until a week after the incident. Almost immediately Heihachi moved out of the apartment and was allowed to build a small hut in Hon-Maru a few miles away from his father. He had also began to study more, the library at Hon-Maru had contained hundreds of ancient texts and dairies, he wished to know more about the curse that afflicted his family. Jinpachi had explained that the books were mostly acquired by Heihachi's great grandfather, who was a scholar, the rest were either obtained through purchasing or were displaced to the Zaibatsu. The books had been collected for hundreds of years through generations of Mishima trying to find answers to the curse that had been bestowed upon them but, many were almost too old to read and a great variety of them were in different languages. So since beginning the readings Heihachi had been learned Greek, Italian, Latin and Ancient forms of Chinese and Japanese but, despite these accomplishments in five years of reading Heihachi had only completed three books in totality. The subjects were difficult to understand and many of the books were incomplete and cited other books to complete their ideas. Personally Heihachi had spent more money on books in the previous year than he had ever spent on himself with the exception of the wedding preparations. The readings were gratifying though, some gave him answers but, more importantly some gave him the ability to ask more specific questions.

Heihachi sat down at his desk and pulled out the book he was currently battling through. The book was different than most of the ones he had read or seen so far for several reasons. The first was that it was written completely in English, the least common of the languages found in the books he read, in fact the only time Heihachi came across reading English in his studies were a myriad of notes taken by various travelers and scholars and only a small percentage of them wrote in English. The second was that the book came with a note from a traveler who claimed to have traveled with one of the elder Mishima who was also interested in getting answers about the curse. The note read:

_I have traveled with this man for sixteen whole years now. He's become like the family I left behind, his determination and will to find answers about this mysterious force than only few have ever heard of is undying and commendable but, now he tells me that he thinks his time is limited and he has asked me to chronicle what will be left of our travels together so that his brethren also afflicted with this problem may have more clues as to what it is and how to deal with it. I have decided to call it 'The Book of Judges' a reference to my friends favorite book of the Bible._

It then listed various dates and events to be referenced and books to be used to help complete stories they had heard over the years, however there was small writing on the very bottom of the page which read:

_I fear for my friend, he looks different, today he informed me that if he succumbs to this disease that it would be best if I killed him. How could I possibly kill this man? He has given me the second chance at life, I'm not sure I can do it but, he did suggest that I get rid of this book to protect it from him, and so I must leave it here in the Jungle of Khan Dhar for protection, if anyone finds it please find that it makes it way to the nearest person with the last name 'Mishima'._

And indeed somehow it had found its way to Hon-Maru and here was Heihachi Mishima reading it. There was one particular section in the book that the elder Mishima had been particular to point out. Heihachi had read it twice already but, in his office bathed by the sunlight of May he read it again. It read:

_We arrived in India three full days later than we expected and we couldn't have afforded to arrive any later. Our food supply is completely diminished and my wounds have not healed as quickly as Mishima's. We stumbled across a hut in the Jungle and to our surprise an extremely elderly man was there seemingly waiting for us. He quickly provided us with nourishment and tended to my wounds with some sort of plant that, at first, put more pain on my wounds but, overnight had healed them completely. The rain that had started five days ago has not stopped today and in only seems more intense. The elderly man told us he cannot let us leave in these weather conditions, we asked about him and he was very willing to tell us about his story. He claimed to have been a Monk many years ago and after the separation of the monk clans he began to study and became a sage. At that he told us he knew that my friend was a Mishima and he knew what he was looking for. Needless to say we were both very excited, perhaps now we would get some answers! _

_ Alas he tells us that the affliction is a curse and one that can never be taken off, that it runs deeper than blood and more powerful than the spirit. He told us that the Russians were the most familiar with the affliction and they referred to it as a word he could not say but, could write, and here is my attempt to recreate the symbol: _Дьявол. _Mishima says he knows Russian and that the symbol translates as 'Devil'. This enlightened us only slightly, we now had a name for our problem but, the Sage informed us that this 'Devil' was a spiritual being looking for a physical body that could handle its power. He told us its genetic and that each Mishima man would be inflicted with the curse until one was chosen and 'Devil' would use that body as its vessel. We asked if there was a way to stop it, the old sage gave us two answers, one was to either end the Mishima bloodline, and the other was not definite. He claimed that when the Monks used to train they would carve training dummies from a certain tree and when the Monks would leave their village on missions they'd line up the training dummies around the village and that when evil spirits came around the wooden men would come to life and combat the spirits. It was possible that wood from this tree could offer some answers. The Sage explained that the tree was all but extinct now but, some remote regions of the world may still have a few, and he gave us a small piece of the bark that he had left. I hope we can come to some kind of answer._

Heihachi turned over the piece of wood, which was a little more than dust now, it seemed familiar. In fact he thought he might have seen this type of wood in Hon-Maru. Heihachi thought for a long moment replaying the forest in his mind, it was possible that he was mistaken about seeing the tree but, if he wasn't it would be a good start to investigate the forest of Hon-Maru. For a moment he sat back in his chair and looked at the buildings in the distance, he wasn't sure if he was going to get any answers. The fact that generations of his family had tried to find answers about this 'Devil' was both distressing and comforting, on one hand it meant he had an better idea than his elders did but, on the other hand the collective of their information didn't help them in time either. It was only a matter of time and Heihachi didn't have to worry about 'Devil' himself but, Jinpachi had already shown signs of weakness. Silently Heihachi sighed, the sun was high and the heat from its glow was surrounding his body, for a moment he felt the purity of nature caressing his skin but, before that feeling was over he was up on his feet and out the door.

Elsewhere the sun laid its heat onto the ground, to the brown dirt and the green grass than had been freshly cut. The smell of the cut grass filled the air with a scent that was akin to the idea of the natural world itself, along with the trees and the fragrances of the flowers that grew in the Mishima gardens. Wang Jinrei walked silently through the fields taking in the sights and the sounds of this remote sanctuary. Often he'd come out to the gardens to meditate or exercise and sometimes even just to sleep on the grass in the middle of the day. Today was a day for strolling, surely he had been through this part of the grounds thousands of times before but, each new day yielded the grass lying in a new direction or the insect crawling to a new hole, there was always something to discover about nature.

Wang slowly eased himself down to the ground to put his ear to the dirt and listen to the vibration of the ravine not far from where he lie. The water flowed past Hon-Maru traveling from an underground passage that opened up right on the outskirts of Hon-Maru, by then the water trickled until it reached the boarder of Japan and into the ocean where it raged again. From here the vibration was nothing more than a simple rumbling against his ear. Sometimes he felt if he was quiet enough he could hear insects creeping up a blade of grass or identify a bird exactly by its call. So long he had been hear he felt as if everything was familiar yet nothing was ever the same, even himself, once he was young and full of vigor, he sprung from one end to the other of the forest in no time, now it took him several moments just to bring his ear to the ground. His hand had once been smooth and clean as it felt through the grass, now it was wrinkled and patched with liver spots as it fingered through the dirt. Wang though was comfortable with his age, he knew he wasn't helpless but, he also knew he wasn't the same Wang Jinrei that could go bursting through windows everyday to catch criminals. His limitations were his friends and he respected them as long as they respected him, each day he exercised and kept his body in as good as shape as he could. Not to mention that the smell and feel of nature always made him feel young again, he could recall being a child and running through the gardens with Jinpachi, running from imaginary night ghast or avoiding the detection of the elders, things were different now but, that same wonderment and cherishing of the natural world filled his heart from time to time.

Living here now was an extra pleasure, he was able to come and go as he pleased and he relatively stayed out of the way of the people who maintained the garden and the foregrounds, though he knew all of them and they all knew him, it was a relationship that thrived on scarcity and the occasional visit. Often they would bring Jinrei wounded animals that he would nurse back to health or help live final hours in peace and Jinrei respected that they saw him as that type of figure. The vibration of the water calmed slightly and Jinrei lifted his head in satisfaction, when he did so he was surprised to see a figure walking in the near distance.

The bear walked on all fours rummaging around the gardens quietly, had Jinrei not looked up he would have probably not have noticed it. It was a great big bear too, its girth was massive, so much so that it made an entire portion of the flowers seem brown of its hide. Jinrei moved cautiously but, without any real fear to sit with his legs crossed to watch the bear and when he did the bear noticed him. For a long moment the bear simply stared directly at Jinrei watching him to see if he would move again and Jinrei just stared back. Though it was close enough to see it was far enough so that the features of its face weren't completely exposed, Jinrei could see the black eyes peering at him though from between the blades of grass and the nose twitched slightly picking up Jinrei's scent. The sight of the bear somewhat surprised Jinrei, in all his years on the grounds he had never once seen a bear before. Some of the gardeners warned him a few times that they had seen a few bears wandering around but, it never came to pass that one would cross paths with Jinrei. The bear nodded its head at Jinrei as if acknowledging that it could see him and so Jinrei did the same, when Jinrei completed his nod the bear moved back as if in shock that Jinrei would mock its movements. For a few seconds it looked around and then turned back to Jinrei and grunted, loud enough for Jinrei to hear but, the volume didn't seem to be threatening and so Jinrei grunted back, again the bear walked in a circle as if confused that Jinrei could mock its movements. A moment of silence came across both of them as the bear seemingly thought of what to do next. Quickly to both Jinrei and apparently to itself because it stumbled slightly, the bear stood up on its hind legs and waved both massive legs in Jinrei's direction and so, now worried what would happen if he had suddenly interrupted their interaction, Jinrei stood up and waved his much feebler arms the same way. The bear descended back to four legs and looked around almost nervously, Jinrei pondered if it thought _he_ was a bear. A slight smile crept on Jinrei's face as he thought of how odd it would be to the bear to see one that looked as old and feeble as him and then as if he wasn't there the bear lost interest and began to retreat back into the forest.

Jinrei stretched and took another deep breath of the clean air, the slightest tinge of smoke touched his nostrils. Jinpachi no doubt.

'_If he's cooking and I unexpectedly show up, he'll have to offer me something'_ Jinrei thought to himself, he smiled to himself happy with his new concocted plot. Indeed he would go drop in on Jinpachi and take food from him, which meant he wouldn't have to cook himself later.

Looking in the direction of where the bear was again, Jinrei noted that it has completely gone out of sight, he took a mental note of that the den of the animal must have been somewhere over the rise. Jinrei then turned and walked into the forest himself following the smell of fire and the familiar trees, a stranger to the land would easily get lost but, Jinrei much like the Mishimas knew the forest like clockwork. Each tree looked different to Jinrei and their differences made it easy to find the Mishimas compound.

There was a science to it though for those who may need the help. The trees were cut at the canopy in a certain way, the more light that got through from the trees the closer you were to the path, the more the trees covered the sun the more one was heading away from Hon-maru. Occasionally when Jinrei was busy thinking about different things to tell Jinpachi he would forget his way and use the system which worked remarkably well, Jinpachi cut all the trees himself and never seemed to forget himself. There was a dangerous drop off in the forest as well that Jinrei had never known about until one time where an intruder attempting to catch Jinpachi off guard wandered into the forest, Jinrei followed him and chased him down, however the man fall off the drop off. Jinrei was forced to rescue him and the rescue was a mission, the drop off fell right into the ravine and had it not been for a small cliff a few meters below the cliff the man would have fallen straight into the ravine and probably died from the drop. Jinrei had made Jinpachi aware of the drop off after the incident and Jinpachi responded by cutting all the trees down in a three yard radius to make it evident when one was coming up to the ravine.

The trees were getting thick, which meant he was almost there, Jinrei was slightly perplexed, how far had he traveled that quickly? In thinking about the old ravine had he walked half a mile already? There was also something else, he felt another presence almost sneaking up on him, Jinrei paid attention to his feelings and continued walking without making any noticeable changes, he let the presence get closer, so close that it was just behind the next tree and when he felt confident enough he struck.

Jinrei's punch was precise and quick, the amount of finesse to perform a punch like this one was probably unfathomable by the average person. The first connected sharply with something but, instead of the object recoiling Jinrei felt pain echo throughout his hand; starting at his knuckles moving down to his hand, into his arm and then all the way to his shoulder. Ignoring the pain Jinrei could see the attacker was throwing a punch of their own and he quickly was able to grab the wrist of the punch and twist it away from landing. Two fingers popped out of his fist position and readied themselves to dig into the attacker's throat, Jinrei pushed them forward but, stopped himself suddenly.

"Aha, Mishima!" Jinrei called out at the sight of Heihachi. Heihachi looked equally stunned as he relaxed his hand, he winced a bit, though they had realized who each other were, Jinrei's twisting of his wrist was painful and precise in a way where he couldn't move it at all without hurting it more.

"Wang Jinrei, I tell you, you appear at the most random of times." Heihachi spoke as Jinrei released him. Jinrei scratched his head before patting the young Mishima on his arm.

"Better than appearing at the most inopportune of times!" Jinrei laughed.

"True," Heihachi flexed his wrist. "What are you doing here?" He asked.

"Oh, I was just going to mooch of your father's cooking." Jinrei admitted.

"Yes, indeed, I can smell the fire." Heihachi commented.

"And your here looking for something aren't you?" Jinrei asked. Heihachi turned to him surprised.

"How did you know that?" Heihachi asked with a chuckle.

"You Mishima all have the same look when you're inquiring about something." Jinrei shrugged.

"Is that so?" Heihachi said quietly. "Well, as a matter of fact I am looking for something," He dug in his pocket and took out the ancient piece of wood. "I'm looking for the tree this bark would come from, if anyone would know you would." Heihachi explained.

Jinrei took the piece of bark into his hand and examined it closely, he held it first very close to his face and then very far away, widening his eyes and squinting them to see better.

"Where did you get this, it must be some hundreds of years old." Jinrei asked.

"It was in one of the diaries from Hon-maru," Heihachi explained. "Do you recognize it?" Heihachi asked.

"I might, there's a series of trees that grow a couple miles deeper in the forest towards To-Muro, there aren't many but, in the winter their bark looks nearly identical to this but," Wang started.

"What's the problem?"

"They say the forest there is cursed of some sort, I've never been but I know some merchants who have gone in that region and have never come back." Wang explained.

"Who does that land belong to?" Heihachi asked.

"Technically To-Muro but, no one from there will step foot that far into the forest, years ago they told Jinpachi he could have it but, he never really went that far. I suppose I could ask him-"

"No," Heihachi quickly interjected. "It'd be best if my father didn't know about this whole conversation Jinrei" Heihachi explained, Wang nodded.

"I understand."

The two men then quietly walked the rest of the way to Jinpachi's compound. When they arrived there a fish was being cooked over a fire, Jinrei immediately went to the fish while Heihachi went to enter the hut. Before he could get too close though Jinpachi came storming out of the hut.

"Who's going after my fish?!" Jinpachi bellowed, he turned to see Wang inspecting the piece of fish carefully and quickly went to him.

"Oh, I was just checking to make sure you hadn't ruined it!" Jinrei lied, Jinpachi lightly tapped Jinrei on the back and laughed loudly.

"This piece is for you anyway," Jinpachi revealed. "I assumed it would be more effective to let the smell of food call you hear than trying to yell my way across the compound" Jinpachi explained. Jinrei smiled widely and turned over the fish.

"You always knew how to get my attention" Jinrei chuckled. Jinpachi turned to Heihachi with an equally pleased smile.

"My son," he exclaimed at the sight of Heihachi. "What brings you here?" Heihachi shook the hand of his father.

"Well, there was something I wanted to discuss with-" before Heihachi could finish the hut door flung open .

"Father!" The boy ran down the stairs across the dirt and latched onto Heihachi's leg.

"Kazuya." Heihachi spoke lightly to the boy, whilst running his hand through the young boys hair. "Do you not wear some sort of footwear when running outside?" Heihachi asked concerned.

"Sorry father, I was just excited when I heard your voice." Kazuya explained, he smiled up at his father and then to his grandfather.

"It's alright but, go back inside and put something on before you hurt yourself like last time." Heihachi ordered. The boy nodded.

"Yes father!" Kazuya turned back towards the hut but, before he could get in Wang interrupted.

"Oh ho?" Wang vocalized. "Do I not get a warm reception?" He asked Kazuya.

"Oh, master Jinrei, I didn't see you there." Kazuya admitted. "Sal-u-ta-tions" The boy said slowly trying to pronounce the word correctly.

"Good, Salutations" Wang bowed slightly to the boy, he motioned him closer and the boy came closer. "Take this but, don't let your father know or your grandfather eat it!" Wang handed the boy a small piece of chocolate. The boy's eyes widened at the candy.

"Thank you master Jinrei!" the boy whispered, Jinrei smiled and chuckled under his breath.

"Now go before they suspect something" Jinrei whispered and the boy was off.

Heihachi watched as Kazuya went into the hut and didn't speak until the boy was gone.

"There are things I want to discuss with you about the Zaibatsu but, since you're about to eat it can wait until tonight." Heihachi explained, Jinpachi nodded at his now fully grown son.

"As you wish," Jinpachi smiled. "Will you be joining us?" Jinpachi gestured to the fish which Jinrei was now intently watching.

"No, I have a lot of reading to do, I'll pick whatever is left or find my own" Heihachi declined.

"Are you sure?" Jinpachi lowered his voice to a whisper. "Jinrei is as greedy as a hog when it comes to food." Jinpachi told his son, by the fish Wang raised his head.

"I heard that Jinpachi!" Wang revealed. Jinpachi bellowed like a fog horn.

"And ears like an owl!" Jinpachi added, the two men laughed and Heihachi found humor in the joke himself it was then Kazuya returned wearing shoes on his feet.

"Good." Heihachi commented. Kazuya smiled.

"Father do you think we could go swimming today?" Kazuya asked, Heihachi frowned.

"Not today, I have a lot of studying to do," The boy looked down to ground in disappointment, Heihachi looked to Jinpachi, who smiled and looked away. Heihachi knelt down to the boy. "but, if my studying ends early perhaps we could and if not, I promise to take you into the city next week." The boy quickly changed moods and hugged his father, Heihachi stood up and nodded at his father.

"How has the studying been going?" Jinpachi asked. Heihachi looked away.

"Slowly, there's not much information but, I'm learning to control my body in new ways from the teachings," Heihachi explained. "Well, I should get to it, I'll see you tonight."

When Heihachi emerged from studying it was very late. Kazuya was sleeping, Wang had already left but, Jinpachi was awake and sitting whilst quietly smoking a pipe in front of his hut looking at the moon. Heihachi approached and sat down next to his father, they said nothing immediately and both took comfort in the cool night air.

"Did your studying go well?" Jinpachi asked. Heihachi nodded.

"The information is plentiful but, not definite; it will take me much more time to understand things more thoroughly." Heihachi explained, Jinpachi rubbed his leg slowly and took another smoke of his pipe.

"So what is it that you want to talk to me about?" Jinpachi asked, Heihachi sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Through some reliable information I've managed to procure a meeting with one of the Zaibatsu worse saboteurs." Heihachi explained, Jinpachi looked at him directly but, Heihachi was still looking at the moon.

"Who?" Jinpachi asked, Heihachi nodded slowly.

"You've heard of him," Heihachi confirmed. "Tseng Yasurgi" Jinpachi rubbed his face with his massive hands an old sign of disapproval.

"Yasurgi is one of the top level Yakuza," Jinpachi explained. "How you managed to secure a meeting with him is only trumped by one other question."

"What am I going to do when I get in front of him," Heihachi finished Jinpachi's statement.

"Exactly," Jinpachi confirmed. "He's a dangerous man, he killed on of my, very able, assistants years ago." When Heihachi was younger, Jinpachi made a habit of having assistants who were trained in the martial arts to aid Jinpachi both in helping run the company and any physical problems he may have.

"Which one?" Heihachi asked.

"Cheng," Jinpachi's voice trailed off slightly. "I rather liked him too, trustworthy, smart. I was heartbroken when I learned what Yasurgi had done to him." Jinpachi explained.

"It happened quickly," Heihachi explained. "I was coming out of a meeting with a supply company based in Japan when I heard a man mention Yasurgi by full name." Heihachi began to explain.

"That's against Yakuza protocol, especially in public" Jinpachi noted.

"Indeed, so instantly I knew this man was stupid and I got out of whatever obligations I had and followed him. In a small amount of time I was in the downtown area, I wasn't doing a great job of following him but, he didn't notice me at all, so then I knew he wasn't Yakuza, not even a low level Yakuza, too careless."

"Alright." Jinpachi followed along.

"Well eventually he turns down an alley and makes another phone call, this time he's talking to Yasurgi directly. He sets up a meeting for tomorrow to discuss the trading of goods. After he's done with the call I jumped out the darkness and confront him, he was terrified and I made him tell me the details of where the meeting was and he was truthful, I threatened him and told him that I'd be taking his place in the meeting." Heihachi explained.

"Do you think he'll interfere?" Jinpachi asked. Heihachi shook his head.

"I don't think so," he said slowly. "He looked pretty terrified." Jinpachi chuckled.

"Heihachi Mishima: striking fear in the hearts of criminals." Jinpachi laughed.

"That one, I doubt I'll have the same effect on Yasurgi." Heihachi sighed.

"Probably not," Jinpachi said seriously. "You're meeting with him in an open place?"

"Yes"

"Then you'll probably never see him." Jinpachi concluded.

"Why not?" Heihachi asked.

"Chances are Yasurgi will check the meeting area from a distance first and when he sees you instead of his planned date he won't even come around, and he'll know you've interfered." Jinpachi explained.

"Quite the contrary, I think," Heihachi rejected. "When Yasurgi sees me, Heihachi Mishima, sitting there instead of that other man, won't he, as a Yakuza, have to see why I'm there?" Heihachi asked. There was slight pause but, then Jinpachi chuckled loudly.

"I suppose that's true," Jinpachi smiled. "Then what?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Heihachi said quietly. "I can imagine how that conversation is going to go." Heihachi stopped talking.

"I know I don't have to say this but, be careful." Jinpachi began. "I know I've taught you about our power as Mishima but, that doesn't mean that there aren't dangerous people out there. Yasurgi is one of the worst, he has ways of winning battles without ever having to raise a fist. When you enter into an issue with the Yakuza you put _everything_ on the line." Jinpachi explained.

"My main concern is the Zaibatsu" Heihachi explained.

"and not me!?" Jinpachi bellowed loudly, straight from the stomach, the whole ground felt like it shook.

"The Yakuza are brazen, not stupid, they wouldn't set a foot against you personally." Heihachi stated.

"Of course not," Jinpachi agreed. "but what about Kazuya?" Heihachi finally took his gaze off the moon and at his father.

"What about him?"

"Don't you think he should be protected?" Jinpachi asked.

"He lives here with you most of the time," Heihachi gestured to the hut. "What better protection is there?" Heihachi asked.

"Well, eventually the boy is going to need proper schooling, there's only so much someone like me can teach him really and he is bright." Jinpachi explained.

"I suppose"

"And when he goes out into the real world how will you protect his identity, he looks _just_ like his father, not to mention his hair grows the exact same way yours does." Jinpachi went on.

"Do you think they'd go that far?" Heihachi asked. The question sparked an incredulous look from Jinpachi.

"They would do it in a heartbeat," Jinpachi bluntly stated. "Anything to tear you down and imagine what prize they would gain by taking the Zaibatsu in your grief, you must think of him before doing this, you must be sure you can weather this storm." Jinpachi explained. Heihachi grunted.

"Do you think I can father?" He asked. Jinpachi smiled.

"My son, I think you can do anything"

"The problem with the Yakuza and the Triads is that they don't fear the police, or the government. I mean they have a natural worry of prosecution but, not one strong enough to deter them because they know they can just infiltrate and change things for their benefit but what if," Heihachi paused and looked his father in the eye. "What if I could make them fear me and the Zaibatsu, then what would happen?" Heihachi asked.

"They'd come after you in their fear." Jinpachi answered.

"And they would err," Heihachi concluded. "If I could just be strong enough, long enough they would have to err and then unravel." Heihachi explained.

"Do you think you can defeat the Chinese and Japanese mafia?" Jinpachi asked. Heihachi grunted again.

"When I say it aloud it sounds silly but, in my heart I _ know_ I can" Heihachi stressed. Jinpachi took another puff of his pipe and let the smoke out in a slow stream.

"I am unsure why you are telling me this," Jinpachi spoke. "Even if I were to tell you not to would you not do it anyway?" Heihachi struggled for words for a moment.

"I don't think I came here for you permission," His words came out slowly as he simultaneously began to grasp the answer. "I think I just wanted you to know." Heihachi went on.

"In case I have to go and save you?" Jinpachi lightly chuckled but, Heihachi seemed to miss the joke.

"No, I think," Heihachi paused. "I think part of me still wants your approval, even if it won't change the outcome, I still like to hear it." Heihachi explained. Jinpachi nodded and stroked his beard methodically.

"I want you to be safe more than anything else," Jinpachi said. "but if you can't I want you to be wise. You have my permission because I trust that you are wise and powerful." Jinpachi laid his hand on Heihachi's shoulder and squeezed tightly. Heihachi silently relished the moment, for once he felt like a child again and it felt good.

"Thanks father." Heihachi said.

"No problem," Jinpachi smiled. "Now lets see if we can get any sleep into you." Said while getting up and the two men retired back to their quarters.

The next day Heihachi was out of Hon-maru before anyone was awake. He drove himself downtown and whilst driving regretted not hiring a driver. It wasn't that he couldn't drive but, more so that he liked to collect his thoughts. The meeting was in China, which was all but a small plane ride, at an outdoor diner they would sit at a table together and discuss whatever it was they had to. Being in a different country would have usually raised some concerns but, this man was part of the Japanese mafia setting up a meeting in China, he was going to be as out of place and without help as Heihachi was. Initially in the morning Heihachi considered calling Wulong about the situation but, if he did it was probable that someone else could hear about it and some issue of corruption or some other kind would come up. So all in all Heihachi was alone in this situation with the possibility of contacting Wulong if he needed his help later, it was reassuring but he couldn't allow his doubts to effect his body of work. The plane ride felt a lot shorter than it was, the Chinese sun was shining high and bright when he arrived. The schedule left no time for Heihachi to collect himself, from the moment he was off the plane he was on his way to the diner.

When he arrived he sat at one of the tables outside facing the street like he was instructed to. He arrived three minutes early but, in the three minutes following no one came. In fact no one came for a full twenty minutes and Heihachi was starting to believe that his father's words were true. Just as he began to doubt that the meeting was going to take place a man walked up to the table and sat down in the seat across from him.

The man was weathered but not damaged in his face but most certainly had the feel of have being used or worn very well. His beard was but a small shrub of grey hair and a moustache to match. His face was clean only marked by a few small scars here and there but, those scars ran deep, one could tell they weren't by some unfortunate mistake or small accident, when faced with them one could see they were powerful marks of servility to the underworld and he wore them, they were incidental, they were ornaments, badges to this man, one could tell by the way his skinned moved that he did not care about the appearance in terms of superficiality but, did concern himself with each story they held about his life. He was the kind of man who wore sunglasses not to keep the sun out of his eyes but to keep others out. So that people couldn't see the inherent evil and calculating state of his eyes. Even through the glasses though Heihachi could see that he thought with his eyes, that even the smile he wore when he sat down at the table was out shone by the deep resentment in his eyes. That years of uninterrupted malevolence had twisted his gaze into a perpetual state of venomous calculation. His hands went instantly to the table to be shown a spurious form of security for Heihachi to pick up on, as if the fact that he was caring enough to show his hands meant he was less dangerous but what innocent man has to consciously think of showing his hands? The hair on his head was black and white, slightly disrupted but, probably twisted the same way his eyes were. Damaged, no doubt by years and years of excessive washing, thorough yet, tough treatments to remove blood, or other substances easily acquired by difficultly removed.

Yasurgi sat down with a wry smile, clearly both impressed and unimpressed to see Heihachi.

"Mr. Mishima…" Yasurgi started, letting the syllable drag like a corpse through mud. "I've got to say this is quite the surprise." Yasurgi fixed his gaze on Heihachi and didn't relent, his eyes didn't even stray for a moment to see what was happening around him.

"Well, if it weren't," Heihachi started. "I'd be worried." Yasurgi laughed mildly and watched Heihachi through the sunglasses.

"Well here we are face to face for the first time," Yasurgi explained. "I've met your father quite a few times, he was always very fond of you, too bad you couldn't just wait for your share of the pie," Yasurgi's mouth laughed but, Heihachi could see his eyes never changed moods. "When I heard you took over the Zaibatsu forcibly I was surprised, Your father is a powerful man, that couldn't have been an easy chore to complete."

"It wasn't," Heihachi lied. "but the more powerful man always comes out on top." Yasurgi nodded slowly.

"Yes, that's quite true," he finally looked away only for a split second, Heihachi followed his gaze, a man at another table quietly got up and left. "In my many years of experience I've learned that, that particular equation is often very true, thus why I am able to be here with you today."

"Indeed," Heihachi considered his next line well. "And your many henchmen of course." This time Yasurgi did laugh genuinely with his eyes but, the laugh was not one of strict humor.

"Your emphasis on the plural is intriguing considering I only signaled one person to leave us in private," Yasurgi went on. He leaned closer to Heihachi. "Tell Mr. Mishima, how many 'henchmen' ready to strike left?" Heihachi was careful not to let the surprise of Yasurgi's calling of his bluff show on his face but, it did. If he lied it was just prove he was unaware of how many their truly were and what would that gain him.

"Who knows?" Heihachi shrugged. "You Yakuza are so careful to not travel alone." Yasurgi nodded again and leaned back.

"You're right," Yasurgi complimented. "We have a very hands on approach in our organization, we like the newer ones to really feel the girth of the mission, really take in all of its essence, like when a mother bear goes for a kill with her cubs with her. Its…" He searched for a word slowly as if picking which bone to break first or what pressure point would be the most startling. "gratifying."

"I'm sure," Heihachi mumbled. Suddenly he didn't feel like being here, he didn't know what to say to this man, he didn't know what was going to come next. There wasn't anyway he was going to get up, get back in a can go the airport and go back to Japan in one piece. This was suddenly a situation of irrevocable consequences, something would have to happen for the two of them to part ways, it was like being physically bound to this man now that he was here.

"So how are things at the Zaibatsu?" Yasurgi asked. "Still making award winning machines and systems to make my job more difficult?" Yasurgi continued.

"Oh, some here and there," Heihachi decided to be forthcoming, what did he have to lose? "Nothing on the horizon immediately the ones out there now do their jobs very well." Heihachi crossed his legs.

"Indeed they do," Yasurgi agreed. "I can't tell you how many times plans of ours have been stopped or postponed because of Zaibatsu funded security precautions." Yasurgi explained; Heihachi smiled.

"Don't start flattering me now," Heihachi smugly ordered. Yasurgi stretched slightly. "There is one project starting that should really impress you when its done. It may even put you out of the job."

"Well, when that day comes I'll welcome it." Yasurgi sighed, Heihachi cocked his head to the side intrigued.

"You mean to tell me you don't enjoy criminal work…" Heihachi took a sip of his water. "Stealing, plundering, raping, murdering. The nature of the work seems to befit someone like you." Heihachi concluded. Yasurgi shrugged.

"No, it's not that but, regardless it's a job. " Yasurgi leaned closer to Heihachi. "I mean, I enjoy the work, especially the fine little details it sometimes take to complete a job but, still a man sometimes wants to sit at home and just watch the sun set." Venom spewed from his mouth to Heihachi, the way the words 'fine little details' rolled off his tongue like small beads of death dancing in the night but, his assertion of wanting to watch the sun set surprised Heihachi, something about how cruel this man could be but, how he enjoyed something so simple pure perplexed Heihachi and made him feel uncomfortable.

"And how many?" Heihachi asked prematurely, his thoughts escaping from his mind and out of his mouth like a bat out of hell.

"How many what Mr. Mishima?"

"How many sunsets have you caused in you lifetime?" Heihachi asked. Yasurgi smiled.

"I hate discussing work when I'm recreating."

"Is that what this meeting was originally about?" Heihachi asked. "Recreation?"

"Well," for the first time since he showed up Yasurgi seemed to think about what he was going to say. Up until this point Yasurgi seemed to talk so fluidly as if all the answers were preconceived. "I'm not at liberty to saw but, that does lead me to question why and how you are here?" Yasurgi face seemed to turn to stone before Heihachi's eyes, the seriousness suddenly washed over him.

"Your man had a big mouth, it didn't take much to get the information out of him." Heihachi tersely explained.

"Noted," Yasurgi quietly hissed, Heihachi suddenly felt a pang of fear in his heart, he had probably just sentenced that man to death. "But that still begs the question of _why_ you're here Mr. Mishima, I know our two organizations haven't gotten along over the years but, we never drop by on your meetings." Yasurgi explained.

"No?" Heihachi raised an eyebrow, "I can recall almost being blown out of a building in this country some years back." Heihachi recalled the incident from those years ago.

"Yes, I heard about that," Yasurgi's eyes glazed slightly as he thought back. "they blew off half of the Chinese Defense Ministry's building. That's not quite my company's style. We're a little more subtle." Yasurgi commented.

"Of course"

"And, you must know," Yasurgi started. "This _is_ China, my organization doesn't have any clout here." Yasurgi finished.

"So why are you here?" Heihachi asked. Yasurgi smiled.

"I believed I asked you first Mr. Mishima." Heihachi shifted slightly in his chair. There wasn't really an answer to that question.

"Curiosity, I suppose," Heihachi admitted. "When I heard your name something just told me to follow."

"Well surely you know…" the look in Yasurgi's eyes returned, Heihachi could see the process in his eyes. "Curiosity killed the cat." He finished, Heihachi shrugged.

"I don't often concern myself with such little details," Heihachi aloofly stated. "If I thought I was in any real danger I would have taken some precautions before sitting down here with you." Yasurgi smiled.

"Mr. Mishima," Yasurgi started calmly but, with the slightest hint of malice dripping from his tongue. "Do you know what it is that I do?" Heihachi shrugged and that was a truthful action, he couldn't pinpoint exactly what it is he did.

"You're a crook," Heihachi simply stated. "A swindler not above, murder, rape, deception, betrayal." Yasurgi nodded.

"Not too unlike yourself." Though Heihachi could feel that Yasurgi was prodding around for a reaction he gave it to him anyway.

"I'm nothing like you." Heihachi sneered. Yasurgi raised an eyebrow.

"You're not?" He asked intrigued.

"Not at all."

"Well, what about betraying you're father and stealing his company from under his nose?" Yasurgi asked. "What category of good Samaritan does that fall under?" Yasurgi smirked.

"You couldn't even begin to understand the relationship I have with my father."

"I can imagine," Yasurgi started. "The perfect son, bred and raise to take his father's place at the right time but, his impatience causes him to pull the rug from under his patriarch and take it for himself. And that dynasty becomes all you have to hold on to and you do like a rabid dog with it's last bone." Yasurgi explained. Heihachi remained calm though he knew his face was betraying his act.

"That was quite poetic," Heihachi spoke. "no matter how untrue." Yasurgi's face suddenly opened up as if remembering something dear.

"Oh that's right," He spoke slowly. "You have that little boy of yours don't you, what's his name again?" The slow pill of Yasurgi's words from his mouth indeed placed where his intentions on Kazuya really were. Heihachi's body welled up with anger and it took all of his will not to slam the table from between them and pummel the man.

"Leave my son out of this." Heihachi growled.

"Of course," Yasurgi mocked. "You came here interrupting my business but, now you want to be civil, now you think I should respect your family because of some higher purpose in life you think you have to fulfill," Yasurgi talked quicker with much force and anger. "Again Mr. Mishima I will ask you: do you know what it is that I do?" Yasurgi's words escaped from his mouth like tiny razors to Heihachi's confidence.

"No." He answered simply. Then as if none of the preceding had happened Yasurgi's face softened and he smiled.

"Good," He stood up. "If you'd like to know you'll be here, in an hour" He dropped a small piece of paper with his handwriting on it and casually walked away. Heihachi watched him as he left and not once did he look back. When he was completely gone Heihachi looked at the paper, on it was instructions to a place in the downtown area by the docks. For a few minutes Heihachi sat in his chair, and then he got up and left.

The place he was supposed to go was no more than fifteen minutes away from where the two of them had met. Heihachi knew this and took the extra time he had deciding on whether or not to go there. Clearly this was some kind of trap, Heihachi knew it but, something in him felt that Yasurgi was somewhat shaken about him being there and if that were the case he could be opening a crack that could lead to the further exploitation of the Yakuza and then who knows what could be accomplished from that. That being said if this was a trap how much damage was Heihachi willing to do? And more so willing to take, though there was indirect contact between the Zaibatsu and the gang this would be something much more concrete and if he didn't come out of it right it could lead to a series of problems with the company and his personal life.

The Chinese sun was beginning to set, the bright day turned into a deep orange, Heihachi was already here, how could he _not_ go further? As predicted it only took Heihachi several minutes to reach the area by bus, the rest of the way he would have to walk. Beyond the ports were several residential buildings but, slightly beyond those was the old district which used to be the hub for many companies and processing plants decades ago. Most of those buildings were either abandoned because of better opportunities up town or abandoned because the business could not stay afloat. Eventually the area became somewhat bare fewer and fewer shops were set up there. When the residential buildings were built, they were all built with their backs to the old district and so, no one who lived in those buildings ever went back there, there was no reason to travel that way anyhow.

It was curious that the Triads didn't have this area of the country locked down. How Yasurgi traveled freely in this country without starting firefights on the street was beyond Heihachi and whatever the case was it was something to ponder and worry over.

Before long Heihachi was standing in front of the building that the directions had commanded he go, in the corner out of his eye Heihachi saw someone dash into an ally. It wasn't of concern he'd have to keep it in mind. Heihachi walked into the building and took a look around. It was an old newspaper processing plant and from the look of it it had been used recently. It was clear it was abandoned but, also clear that someone had been using the machinery recently. Above the largest machine was a medium size office, Heihachi surmised Yasurgi was in the office, so he walked to the staircase adjacent to the machinery and into the office. When he entered the office Yasurgi was sitting behind a desk and looked up somewhat surprised.

"Mr. Mishima…" He commented in a low drawl. "You came." Heihachi took a quick inventory of the room, it was essentially empty. Made of pure brick and had a medium industrial style light in the middle of the ceiling.

"Well," Heihachi began. "It was the least I could do." Yasurgi smiled wryly, even that was sinister in its way.

"Please, sit down." He gestured to a chair right in front of the desk. Heihachi sat but, cautiously kept his eyes on the man. For a moment the man seemed to be unfocused as if something had distracted him from far away, a passing thought maybe. Yasurgi scratched his head and yawned slightly.

"So why am I here?" Heihachi asked sullenly. Yasurgi, smiled and nodded at Heihachi.

"You see we're two businessman," Yasurgi began. "and we both want to continue or businesses with as little problems as possible. You could make a foolish move and attempt to bother my operation and suffer some unfortunate repercussions but, since we've been peaceful to this point, I'd suggest we continue that trend."

Heihachi listened closely, in the distance a plane roared in the sky but, it was nothing that a kittens purr where they were.

"How do you suggest we do that?" Heihachi asked.

"Well, I'm willing to make a deal with you," Yasurgi began. "Whatever it is you want we can work out and pretend this meeting never truly happened."

"And what if I refused?" Heihachi asked, Yasurgi frowned and rubbed the back of his neck slowly.

"I really don't know Mr. Mishima," Yasurgi started, the lines is his faced curved as the thoughts in his head sharpened. "But it's something I'm sure the two of us don't really want to confront."

There was a pause, a slight flaw in time almost where the two men were vulnerable to one another, in that moment they could almost hear each other's thoughts.

"Well, to be fair, I don't think there's anything you can offer me." Heihachi spoke slowly. Yasurgi sighed very slowly, in fact it could have been confused with a normal breath but, Heihachi noticed it.

"That's unfortunate," Yasurgi started. "Our two organizations have been working for so many years now. It's a shame it has to come to something like this."

The movement was so fast it almost blinded Heihachi but, he could almost see the electrical signal traveling from Yasurgi's brain down to his arm and to his concealed hand. As a reaction Heihachi's foot smashed right into the desk flipping it over onto Yasurgi causing Yasurgi to miss the shot from his pistol and Heihachi to fall backwards in his chair. The blast from the gun was deafening and disoriented Heihachi slightly as he struggled to get up from the floor. When he was on his feet Yasurgi had already rebounded and tackled him back to the cold concrete slab. Yasurgi sat on top of Heihachi, his eyes wild with excitement, his scars seemed to curl upwards in twisted smiles on his face and his mouth sprawled into a nefarious grin. He raised his right arm high and look into Heihachi's eyes.

"You should have bargained!" Yasurgi yelled excitedly as he plunged the knife downwards but, Heihachi tossed his arm and deflected the stab and twisted Yasurgi's arm into his and pulled it forcing the man to stand, Heihachi stood too and punched the Yasurgi square in his gut causing the man to expel all the air in his body. Heihachi attempted to replicate the action but, Yasurgi caught his wrist and twisted his fist like a pretzel, Heihachi yelled out in pain as Yasurgi escaped his grasp. Heihachi twisted out of the maneuver and they were face to face again, Yasurgi pulled the pistol back up to aim but, Heihachi smacked his arm sending the gun flying out the window to the first floor. Yasurgi watched it be lost and turned backed to Heihachi, he cracked his knuckles and flexed his neck.

"You aren't the first Mishima I fought," Yasurgi wiped a dot of blood running down his chin from his lip. "You won't be the last either." He darted forward and tossed a punch directly at Heihachi's face but, the young Mishima dodged and matched the move with a kick. Yasurgi's eyes lit up at the incoming blow and he quickly grabbed Heihachi's leg and tossed it aside, distracting Heihachi's movements and obtaining several blows to the Mishima's gut. As Heihachi hunched over in pain Yasurgi grabbed him by his hair and lead him to the window and tossed his head into the neighboring wall. Heihachi's head careened into the brick wall and he stumbled back into Yasurgi's grip who proceeded to lead Heihachi back into the wall. Mishima was smarter this time and with all his might grabbed Yasurgi's leading arm and tossed Yasurgi clean out the window.

As the older man began to fall he grabbed Heihachi's wrist and pulled him through the window too. Both men fell to the first level, Heihachi landing on his back Yasurgi on his side, they both wallowed in their pain for a moment but, Yasurgi was the first to stand and approach Heihachi as he only just began to rebound. A swift kick to the face landed Heihachi with his back to the wall, followed by several devastating blows to the gut, chest and face. Heihachi's body began to crumple under the pain, his mind whirred with thoughts, delusions from the pain. He continued to tell himself to stay focus and as he body slumped he saw his opportunity. He foot smashed against Yasurgi's lower leg causing the man to fall to one knee, Heihachi followed up with an uppercut that landed perfectly to Yasurgi's chin, lifting the man off the ground and falling back.

Heihachi struggled to stand as Yasurgi rolled behind a machine and disappeared. Heihachi took the brief reprieve to take a breath and collect himself. He was bleeding from his face and it was evident that his left arm was most likely broken as well as some ribs. The pain was nauseating but, he had to fight through it. The aching was distracting his thoughts were trying to center on where Yasurgi had fled but, his mind only wanted to focus on resting. Heihachi had been in fights before but, this was different, Yasurgi was powerful, the impact of his punches were like stones smashing against stone. When he spared with Jinpachi those blows were sometimes worse but, there was something else, these blows were malicious and disrupting. Heihachi shook his head, as if trying to shake the pain out and began to walk forward.

He turned the corner where Yasurgi had gone but, the man wasn't there. When Heihachi entered the warehouse didn't seem this large but, now he could see the sheer volume of the place. Yasurgi could be anywhere, Heihachi had to remain alert and smart. For a moment Heihachi considered leaving, if he could escape this would be over…for now. Of course if he did leave Yasurgi would tell the rest of the Yakuza, if he already hadn't, and they'd put pressure on the Zaibatsu. It wasn't long before Heihachi realized there was going to be only one way out of this, there was no way he could let Yasurgi go and there was no was Yasurgi could let him go. Heihachi would have to somehow capture the man, maybe bring him to Kai Wulong. That could work, they were in the country it wouldn't take long to reach him, all he had to do was capture-

From the corner of his eye he saw Yasurgi leap out from behind one of the machines and instinctively Heihachi went into a defensive position but, it was then that he realized that Yasurgi had reacquired the pistol and was aiming it, there was no time to duck or dodge, all Heihachi could do was leap forward and attempt to disrupt the shot. Before he could grab Yasurgi's arm and wrestle the gun away two loud pops echoed in the warehouse. The pain pierced Heihachi's right arm twice, enough so that his eyes unfocused for a moment. Though he was shot he did manage to get the gun away from Yasurgi and slam him against one of the newspaper cutting machines, turning it on. The machine bellowed and groaned to life sending a deep vibration through the air. Yasurgi stumbled as he began to bleed from the back of his head. Heihachi swung but, the older man was still quick, ducking and sending his on punch deep into Heihachi's stomach. The blow was debilitating, Heihachi's body gave in and fell, to which Yasurgi got behind him and began to choke him in a sleeper hold. Heihachi thrashed back and forward but, Yasurgi held on repositioning himself on the conveyer belt in a way that Heihachi couldn't escape. The man's arms tightly pressed against Heihachi's neck and chest and already he could feel his mind slowly beginning to blur. Heihachi tried to collect his thoughts and it hit him, Yasurgi was on the conveyer belt, he couldn't stay there, he'd be thrust into the cutter and killed if he didn't let Heihachi though, all Heihachi had to do was stay focus and wait out the attack. Still he thrashed attempting to loosen Yasurgi's grip on him but, the older man didn't waver at all.

"That's the problem with you Mishima," Yasurgi hissed. "You never know where your place is, you never know when to just give up." Heihachi could hear blood bubbling in Yasurgi's throat, as if this battle was exciting his entire body. In his voice there was the undeniable sound of elation as he pressed harder against Heihachi's throat. The blood in his arms throbbed like an erection, as if he was getting some sick orgasmic pleasure from slowly killing the Mishima. Heihachi's eyes began to tear automatically as he strained every muscle, nerve and atom in his body to not pass out, it had to only be a little longer until Yasurgi was forced to let go, but his fingers were numb and the pain in his ribs was nothing more than a slight tingle. He felt invincible but, he knew that was because his body was shutting down slowly.

"Let go…" Heihachi managed to spit out. "You'll fall into the cutter if you don't let go." Yasurgi twisted more forcefully.

"You see you just don't get it Mishima," Yasurgi started. "if you just gave up this could all be over. There's more pleasure in killing you then surviving" He twisted again.

Heihachi knew then he wasn't going to let go, he refocused what was left of his thoughts to push he legs against the ground. For a moment the flailed like fish on cement but, eventually they caught the grip and pushed feebly against the floor pushing his body against the body of the conveyer belt. Heihachi's eyes went dark, he couldn't tell if he had gone blind, or had just closed his eyes, his mind was running in several different directions all he could feel was that his feet was still pushing against the floor, stronger with purpose.

Suddenly the grip on his neck became dire, the strongest he had ever felt but no quicker than it happened it released all together. From the back of his mind he heard a scream that made his skin crawl. His eyes flickered back into working, they were closed but, had just opened. The vibration in the air labored off and on, the machine on his back shook violently like an ill cough. Heihachi breathed in then out. For a moment he sat there, his memory failed, what had just happened? As his mind began to return flickers of reality came to him: China, Yakuza, Kazuya, Yasurgi-

Yasurgi. He forced his legs to stand, he looked around, the man was nowhere to be found. The conveyer belt was wrought with blood. His and Yasurgi's no doubt, the machine labored. Why had he let go? The cutter, Heihachi slowly looked into it. Yasurgi was there dead. His head was intact but, whatever was left of him was grinded and cut into some mass so disturbed Heihachi couldn't identify what was what.

Heihachi cringed at the sight, or was it the pain? He looked at his shoulder. There were two gaping holes in it bleeding out of control. Heihachi wearily ripped his shirt and began to tie the cloth over the wounds. As he tightened the knot the pain climaxed and his whole body shivered violently. He knew he was going to die if he didn't get some sort of emergency help. His face was covered in blood, bleeding from his head, face, neck. He could see the exit, it wasn't far.

One step at a time…

He walked to the exit and out, the Chinese sun had almost completely set, the sky was amethyst above him and black like a void in the distance. The road was a bit further but, he could see it, if a car passed by he could get a ride. He walked slowly to the road but, his body protested. He needed rest, if only for a moment. Heihachi was able to get to a building and lay his back against the wall and slowly sit on the ground. The night air filled his lungs, it smelled of the city but, faintly of the countryside. Like Hon-maru, he missed it much now, he could visit though, in a dream.

Something tugged at him, he weakly resisted, but it persisted. It wasn't long until it all returned to him. How long had he been asleep? His eyes opened, the sky was pitch black, the thing tugged again and again. Not at his leg, not at his arm, at his pocket…a pickpocket? Like a snake Heihachi's hand snapped on to the thing tugging him and pulled it up to his face.

The little face frowned and resisted against Heihachi's grip but even in his weariness the little thing couldn't break free. He was a little Chinese boy in tattered clothing, his hair was already white, he looked like an old person in a young body. Heihachi thought slowly.

"You speak this language?" Heihachi asked, the little boy glared Heihachi could tell he understood.

"Let me free." The boy said with a heavy Chinese accent.

"You want the money in my wallet?" Heihachi asked. "You can have it." He let the boy go. "But, I can give you double that," he pointed to the wallet which the boy was going through. "if you do me a favor. Which would you prefer?" The boy looked at the wallet then at Heihachi. From his expression Heihachi could see that he was in worst shape than he felt.

"You have more money?"

"I am a rich man," Heihachi spoke slowly, he felt his mind passing again.

"Fine, what do I do?"

"Take this money, get to the nearest phone call the Hong Kong police and ask for Kai Wulong, tell him that Heihachi Mishima needs him and to bring an ambulance, then tell him where I am," He paused to keep from passing out. "Can you do that?" The boy nodded. "Now go"

The boy looked at Heihachi once more then stood up and ran away. Every part of Heihachi's body hoped the boy would actually come back and then he passed out again.

When he woke, Heihachi was not were he was last. White lights flooded his vision as it slowly began to recover itself. The air was sterile not natural, his mind sent signals to his arms and legs but they responded slowly and minimally. He was alive, which was good but, where was he and why did he feel so weak? After time, what could have been a minute or as long as a day, the white lights narrowed into dark shadows, they stood over him and appeared to look right at him. They were misshapen, like aliens or monsters, they had a particular interest in Heihachi though, as every time he attempted to move they seemed to congregate over him. After more time, which more likely a few days rather than a few minutes, one shadow gained a form, one Heihachi recognized. His mind was thinking again, memories were being recalled, feelings were coming through. Heihachi could feel his heartbeat, his skin, the light began to burn his eyes slightly so he blinked slowly. Eventually he was capable again, just not functioning, he remembered what happened with Yasurgi, in his mind he tried to estimate how bad he must have been hurt, considering he couldn't place any event that happened after it. The shadow above him stood there intently looking down at him, Heihachi recognized it, now if only he could bring his mouth to speak.

"J…Jinrei?" He slowly let loose the one word, which was much more of a process than he thought it'd be. The shadow's movements stopped, it looked like shock.

"Ho, ho, ho," The shadow exclaimed. "He rises."

Heihachi demanded to sit up but, failed again, his eyes began to focus, now instead of a shadow Jinrei was standing over him smiling.

"Where am I?" Heihachi asked wearily. Jinrei leaned closer and inspected Heihachi a little.

"You're in a Hong Kong hospital." Jinrei explained.

"Was it that bad?" the words came out slowly, but he was talking.

"Ho, ho," Jinrei tapped Heihachi's arm gently. "For a moment there even _I_ got worried." Heihachi groaned.

"How long," He lost his breath but slowed down and regained his composure. "How long have I been out?"

"Three years." Jinrei said tersely. Heihachi's eyes widened and Wang laughed lightly. "No, no, ten days total. You started stirring two days ago but you went back out." Jinrei explained.

"Damn," he paused. "How bad is the damage?" Jinrei nodded and looked Heihachi up and down.

"You have two ribs left, both your arms are broken, your left knee is shattered, a concussion and not to mention you were shot twice in the shoulder!" Jinrei chuckled. "You're most lucky to be alive Heihachi Mishima. It begs the question," he paused. "How did all of this happen? Heihachi stirred briefly thinking over all the details.

"I met with a Yakuza, we had a disagreement now I'm here and he's not." Heihachi groaned slightly.

"Yakuza," Jinrei pondered. "Do you know who it was?"

"Yasurgi" Heihachi spoke. Jinrei rubbed his forehead and though he was looking at Heihachi he seemed to be looking passed him.

"Yasurgi, Well then you are lucky to be alive." Jinrei said. "Was he the only one?"

"Yes."

"Good." Jinrei sighed and turned from Heihachi and pulled a chair over to the bed to sit.

"But…" Heihachi started. "There was a period of time in our meeting where he could have, and probably did tell others where he was and who he was with." Jinrei stroked his beard slowly and didn't speak for a long moment. In the distance bells chimed, too many to count, but not enough to have been late.

"Dangerous," Jinrei finally spoke quietly. "You killed him?" Jinrei asked.

"He's dead."

"Then the Yakuza will want revenge but, they won't do it here." Jinrei looked around. "It's curious that any of them are in China anyhow. You may have opened up a larger can of worms than you anticipated." Jinrei sighed.

"My father…" Heihachi began.

"He is here, I couldn't convince him not to do any personal investigation however," Jinrei sighed again. "He shouldn't be gone much longer. He'll be pleased to see you this way."

"And Kazuya?" Heihachi asked.

"He's fine, he staying with a merchant friend of mine. Someone trustworthy I assure you." Jinrei spoke.

"I believe you," Heihachi looked straight at the ceiling in thought. "How was I found?" Heihachi asked, unable to remember anything past Yasurgi's mangled body.

"A young Chinese boy called Kai Wulong and lead him to you," Jinrei explained. "Is there a story behind that?" Heihachi laughed briefly and it hurt.

"He was trying to steal my wallet," Heihachi recalled. "I told him I'd give twice the amount of money in my wallet if he called Wulong."

"Interesting, it would seem you owe him a little more," Jinrei nodded. "if it weren't for him, I don't think you'd be here now."

"I'll have to employ you to find him…" Heihachi smirked.

"Oh?," Jinrei smiled his toothy grin. "How much would this job be paying?"

"When have we ever not paid you well?" Heihachi asked.

"I suppose," Jinrei laughed again. "I suppose I shouldn't take advantage of you while you're in this position." Jinrei spoke.

"What do you mean?"

"Well the boy remembers your promise, he comes to the hospital every day waiting for you to get up and pay him." Jinrei chuckled. Heihachi groaned quietly.

"A true merchant," Heihachi smiled. "you sure he's not of your clan?" Heihachi asked, both men laughed.

"No, he's not mine, but I don't think you'll be able to slip past him."

"I don't intend to. At soon as I'm ready we'll bring his parents here, I'll set them with a job at the Zaibatsu with good pay plus a reward." Heihachi explained.

"Oh, ho ho?!" Jinrei laughed. "all of that just for saving you? I've got to get into the habit." Outside a car honked its horn, children laughed, people were chattering. The men sat in silence listening to China.

"Jinrei…"

"Yes, Heihachi?"

"I'm tired." Heihachi lazily moved his arm.

"Then rest, there's nothing wrong with resting your eyes. You've seen a lot." Jinrei nodded.

"I guess."

"Just," Jinrei began. "Don't decide to wake up a week from now."


	5. Interlude I

On the planet Earth one can imagine few places unspoiled by man. Rich, beautiful locations, sprawling with endless amounts of nature. A place where, when the sun opened its large glowing eye, one could see for eternity and feel life pulsating under the rich brown and black earth. Where trees reached to the sky and shook hands with the clouds and blades of grass cut through the air, and served as diving boards for insects and as food for deer. When the spring came the flowers bloomed in explosions, like fireworks from the green grass and birds returned and sung all day, when the summer came the brook flowed gently and clear, hissing ever so slightly, splashing loudly when the bear bathed or hunted, in the fall when the leaves browned and the air cooled and the crisp wind felt like pure mint in one's mouth. Or like now, in the winter when the snow piled up for days making an oasis of white, a sea of powdery chill that if one looked closely they could see a rabbit poking its head from underneath before scurrying back into obscurity.

This was one of those places, though it wasn't unspoiled by man. In fact for generations many men lived here but, unlike their brethren in the urban cities, these men lived in unison with the nature around them. Each one of them could hear the Earth, the trees, the birds, the insect at all times. The vibration of the Earth was like their heartbeat, for these men tuned out the world and paid attention to the Earth itself.

That's not to say these men were monks. Over the years they learned to adapt to society, in fact in recent years they had began to re-integrate back into society. You could find some in the city, eating or even relaxing but, that didn't mean their mind wasn't on the planet and it's woes.

The world suffered and so did the people in it and these men knew this, so they took an oath to protect the defenseless and to keep the powers-that-be at bay. The most weighty of these powers that governed the sufferers and the powerful was money. Where large amounts of money were involved so were these men, the rich got richer and the poor stayed defeated, unless they intervened.

And thus was the code of the Manji, take from the rich and give it to the poor. Some called them Robin Hood's, others called them criminals. Both were true to a degree, theft was not a crime the Manji looked twice at, though they were particular who they stole from. Virtuosity was of the utmost importance to the Manji, a man was never determined by his possessions but, rather what he did without them. Selfishness beget greed and greed deserved judgment and the Manji were the judges. However the act of theft in itself could be viewed as immoral, the fine line between right and wrong and the stipulations that decided what was what was something the Manji had to figure out on their own. Some people thought that the Manji made up the rules as they went along but, in actuality they had a long line of tradition and rules. The clan weren't all blood related, in fact most of them weren't related at all. The Manji recruits usually came from poor children who were saved by the Manji, or sent to the Manji by heir parents for a more stable life. Though being a Manji wasn't the easiest life, virtue had a lot to do with a Manji, only someone able to understand and practice the laws of the Manji to the fullest could ever hope to be a full member of the clan let alone a practicing member on raids and of course there was the leader.

The leader of the Manji clan could only be someone totally focused on virtue and fixing the evils done in the world. Someone committed in mind, spirit and body to constant self sacrifice. The leader of the Manji clan was charged to understand that they would always be asked for too much and more often receive not enough. For generations the leader had been chosen then passed down to the most worthy and so on and so forth.

And the leaders all shared the same title, a title that meant more than any non-Manji could ever know. That title was: Yoshimitsu.

Yoshimitsu was always the leader of the Manji clan, from it's birth until this very day, though Yoshimitsu was not the same person always. The name was in fact a title that most of the leaders of the Manji clan assumed as a symbolic way of giving themselves wholly to the clan. There were old Yoshimitsu's and young Yoshimitsu's, great warriors and great thinkers. All possessing a different quality that allowed the Manji clan to sustain itself for generations.

The modern world asked something different of Yoshimitsu. In the past battles were fought but they weren't common place, however over time the criminals became more armed and more dangerous, thus the Manji had to become fighters…all of them and most of all Yoshimitsu. The exchange of money became more difficult as well, banks and electrical sending of monies made it more difficult to track and even more difficult to steal. As the modern world became more futuristic the Manji clan found themselves wondering if they could keep up with it. But all Yoshimitsus reassured the clan that there was nothing that would stop their resolve, as the world changed so did the Manji clan. Some of the highest profile bank robberies were in fact heist pulled off by the Manji clan. Secrecy was their number one rule but, as criminals became less mysterious and more ambiguous the Manji clan was forced out of hiding and eventually their name became known by many. That development compromised Manji operations slightly but, as a result a degree of fear began to grow of the Manji and that somewhat kept some criminals in line itself.

But the undeterred criminals required a special touch sometimes. One that was a little more forceful and a little less subtle. Guatemala was one of the places where the criminals walked freely on the street and controlled with an iron fist, trafficking of all sorts were the primary source of monetary values, mostly the transferring of drugs and workers. This presented a good paradigm shift for the Manji, though the drugs were circulated widely from country to country, the money usually stayed more focused in one place and what a lot of money it usually was, so much so that the Manji traveled secretly across the world to intercept it.

In the town of Jutiapa, the drug dealers met. Bathed in sunlight and hidden in fear. They sat in schools, churches, homes and even municipal buildings, they congregated and discussed, plotted and schemed and no one lifted a hand against them. Javier De Marcos was one of those schemers. Smart, young and dangerous, he led a gang of drug dealers and violent criminals and they called themselves "La Cinco Muertes". An uninspired name relating to the first time the founding members pulled off a successful drug heist, all in all they killed five military officials and took their guns as souvenirs and parading it in a stolen jeep in town the next day.

Usually an embarrassment like that would convince the military to quickly shut the group down but, De Marcos was undeterred. He gave all the drugs back to the original dealers and claimed superiority over the military and its contacts, citing his victory over them. At first the dealers were skeptical but, over time De Marcos gained their trust and he did prove to be a better middle man. Back and forward he delivered drugs and money and eliminated any problems in the way for a fee. The dealers stayed in business and De Marcos got rich off of his pay. Eventually there wasn't any way to transfer drugs anywhere in Guatemala without De Marcos' assistance somehow. Some small time dealers attempted to do it themselves but, De Marcos intercepted them and gave them a stern ultimatum. It wasn't long before became a powerful figure in Guatemala and surrounding countries, his business moved to other countries; Mexico, Colombia, even as far as the United States. De Marcos has plenty of money…to steal.

The Guatemalan summers were almost unbearable, the heat was an aggressor, dangerous, relentless almost evil in intent. It felt as if it was purposely beating down on each citizen, smacking its prey on the back continuously for hours. The air thinned from the heat and the sun choked out the people, the poor were forced to take cover under shade, where the sun didn't beat down as much but, seared into the skin more. The rich had air conditioners to combat the heat but, occasionally the heat won and destroyed the machine and tortured them relentlessly as well. The ground baked and cooked, even the drinking water became an unwelcoming experience as it slowly ran down the throat in a mass of heat effected liquid. The cool was brief and fleeting and no one was spared.

De Marcos wiped his face with a small handkerchief and sighed, the truck on the first floor was coming in, more motor heat, it was only going to get hotter in this place as the shipments came in. The offices were stifling even with the windows open, they were all under alert of a power overload if too many air conditioners were turned on. De Marcos needed the energy, shipping these drugs would take all day and into the night, if they didn't have light it wouldn't be possible. Holding it here was dangerous too, though he had a task force the size of a medium size militia. There were only a few idiots stupid enough to try to attack them but then again, these were everyone's drugs. To jeopardize this would be to jeopardize their own shipment and what would that do besides get everyone angry?

Another truck was backing up, De Marcos looked down on them from the third floor, this truck was old, falling apart and probably generating enough heat to cook with.

"I hate this fucking backwater country," De Marcos groaned to one of his men standing next to him. "We're going to leave this place one day and go somewhere cold, like Alaska." He turned away from the trucks and walked down the hall, the man followed.

"That may be too much," The man said. "but somewhere better than this can't be that bad."

"It's only three more shipments Humberto, and we'll have enough to continue this in Mexico, from there we'll move north." De Marcos relayed, he smiled as he thought about it. Humberto Rosario, who wasn't Guatemalan, nodded and smirked.

"You think you can keep this operation going in America?" Humberto asked, De Marcos shook his head.

"I don't know but, at this point anywhere is better than this," he gestured around. "These dealers aren't interested in the big picture, they just want to make enough to buy a few prostitutes or live in a nice home," he paused to scoff. "They don't understand there aren't any good homes here, this is Guatemala, even our military live in the slums." De Marcos spat his words out aggressively.

"Well, we've got enough money to do whatever." Humberto explained.

"But we're not going to do whatever, we've got to have plans," De Marcos sighed. "I spent my life trying to get out of here, and that's what I'm going to do."

"How much is this shipment?" Humberto asked.

"Another two hundred thousand," De Marcos coughed. "I know that's more than I usually hold at once but, I want to get this out quickly. I don't trust some of these new guys." De Marcos explained.

"The money is in the usual spot?" Humberto asked, De Marcos nodded.

"Most of it," De Marcos scratched his head. "The best way to lead a rat out of its hole it's with some bait. We can afford to lose some money." De Marcos explained.

From the first floor a man yelled Spanish loudly up at them, there was a pause, and then another man called out something similar.

"It's all here lets go." De Marcos said to Humberto.

"Salutations, fair gentlemen!" A voice from behind them spoke excitedly, a voice they didn't recognize. The two men turned around and standing in front of them was a man, dressed in garb they had never seen. Flamboyant and strange, with a mask that covered the man's face completely, though from the way it looked one could tell he was smiling.

"What the hell?" De Marcos exclaimed, The man turned his face to Humberto.

"Would you happen to be a one, Javier De Marcos?" The strange man asked.

"What the hell are you?" Humberto asked. From within the mask the man's eyes narrowed into a devious smirk.

"I am a natural disaster!" The man swiftly kick De Marcos to the ground but, as quickly as he was able to do that Humberto pulled out a gun and had it aimed at the strange man's chest. The shot came but, before the bullet could pierce the strange man seemingly fell into the floor and disappeared. Shocked Humberto looked around attempting to understand what happened to the strange man. As he did so he felt something grab from behind, his head twisted and holding on to him with a powerful grip was the strange man in the mask.

"You may call me Yoshimitsu." Yoshimitsu then lifted into the air in a leap with the man in his arms and at it's peak, simply let the Humberto go. Humberto landed on his back and all the breath from his body exploded out right before he lost consciousness. Yoshimitsu landed perfectly on his feet next to Humberto and De Marcos who was only getting to his knees.

"Aha!," He exclaimed to De Marcos "Now I would like to inquire where you maintain your great amounts of legal tender." Yoshimitsu knelt down to De Marcos with smile but, De Marcos seemed in terrible fear as he spoke. Before De Marcos could muster up words, or a scream, the first floor erupted with activity and gunfire. Yoshimitsu looked down to the first floor and frowned.

"Remain here, I shall return rapidly." Yoshimitsu spoke happily and then tossed himself over the edge to the first floor.

Yoshimitsu landed next to a man who, quickly aimed a gun at him but, with little to no struggle Yoshimitsu unsheathed a sword and cut the gun in two like a hot knife through butter. A quick palm to the man's chest sent him careening to the floor and out of trouble. The first floor was in total chaos, De Marcos men were shooting wildly at the intruding Manji task force, the bullets rained seemingly from every side but, Yoshimitsu paid no mind to it, instead his eyes scanned the room looking for something in particular. Halfway across the floor he found it, bouncing from one enemy to another, punching and kicking in a flurry, Yoshimitsu smiled and ran towards it.

As he got closer the bullets became more precise, Yoshimitsu was not bothered however, he simply swatted them away with his sword. With a sleek flip he landed in front of his intended target.

"Enjoying yourself Kunimitsu?" Yoshimitsu asked, the Manji turned to him, her face masked by a traditional fox mask, though Yoshimitsu could tell her face was disinterested. "I was under the impression you were going to commence this attack in a way devoted more in the way of stealth."

Kunimitsu put her hand through her ponytail and looked around briefly.

"The plan changed," She spoke quickly. "Did you find where the money is?" Kunimitsu asked, Yoshimitsu shook his head.

"I haven't yet exposed the location of the monetary assets but, De Marcos is fervently awaiting my return." He explained, Kunimitsu made a sound that Yoshimitsu could tell was a sigh.

"That's information that would help."

"I am aware," He paused staring at her. "I surmise you took count of how many hostiles there are?" Kunimitsu nodded.

"Thirty in total." She revealed.

"Thirty?" Yoshimitsu repeated. "Not a very daunting number, am I correct to deduce that you could engage those thirty on your own?" Yoshimitsu asked.

"I probably could," Kunimitsu muttered. "But the other guys need something to do too."

"Indeed," Yoshimitsu spoke tersely. "I suppose since you are able to handle this battle, I should return to De Marcos" He smiled slightly and then ran back into battle.

Kunimitsu was different from her counterpart in many ways. Being a woman was the first major difference, Kunimitsu defied the rules and tradition of the Manji. She was around the same age as Yoshimitsu and they had spent most of their lives together, from children until Yoshimitsu ascension. Where Yoshimitsu was a light hearted leader, Kunimitsu was more stern, quiet and reserved a lot of the eccentricities that Yoshimitsu inhibited were awkwardly contrasted by Kunimitsu's seriousness. The second in command of the Manji clan Kunimitsu was one of the only blood born Manji's. Her Grandfather was the latest former Yoshimitsu, she cherished and served him both as a granddaughter and as a Manji, she was also the only female Manji in the Manji strike team a goal achieved with the help of the current Yoshimitsu. The small dagger she carried was once her grandfather's, she used it as her weapon of choice.

To her side she could see more men lining up to fire down on the Manji, she frowned briefly and began running towards their direction. The three men were on the second floor, which was only separated by a small iron ladder and platform. As she ran she kept an eye on the men trying to time the right time to get her attack in. Around her the other Manji fought bravely easily taking on the thirty men. There were seven Manji in total, more than enough to take on thirty ill-trained drug flunkies. Guns were a problem for the Manji, they didn't use them but, almost all of their enemies did but, the Manji adapted fighting techniques to combat the use of long range weapons. The clan was trained to utilize the techniques of the way of the ninja, stealth and secrecy, however in battles like this they were able to fight strongly and effectively.

As Kunimitsu got closer to the men she thrust herself off the ground, she caught on to the iron ladder and propelled herself onto the platform. The three men seemed surprised to see her appear so quickly, in a stupor they attempted to aim their weapons at her but, she was too quickly, dispatching each man with quick precise moves. From the platform she could see the last of De Marcos men were surrendering, it was an easy job but, they didn't have the money yet and she knew the real trouble never started until _after_ they found the money. In her mind she sighed, Guatemala was a long way from home, the traveling had taken energy out of her but, the haul of cash they were going to take back was quite the amount.

Years ago she wouldn't have imagined being here, not like this. When her grandfather was Yoshimitsu she used to watch him and wonder what it would be like to be him. There were sacred things bestowed to the Yoshimitsu, the most sacred of all was the sword.

The sword was also named Yoshimitsu, it wasn't clear which was named first but, the sword was said to posses the soul of each past Yoshimitsu, it also was supposed to have the ability to judge. The wielder, which could only be the current Yoshimitsu, could cut down foes with a single stroke but, depending on whether the victim was righteous or not, the sword could either inflict no pain or destroy. For every fallen foe however the sword became more unruly waiting to destroy another, a bloodlust of sorts. To be Yoshimitsu required great physical strength and will power to control the sword. It has been said that the ideal Yoshimitsu was in tune with sword, both obeying and controlling it.

When she was young, Kunimitsu watched her grandfather train and eventually she began training as well wanting to become powerful and skilled like him. Eventually she became one of the best hand to hand combat fighters in the Manji clan, her grandfather praised her and the other Manji looked up to her. She eventually reached her peak, unable to serve in the Manji task force but then he interfered. Even as a young man the current Yoshimitsu was benevolent and when Kunimitsu and completed her duties in the Manji brotherhood, he insisted she be let into the Manji task force. Many of her brothers agreed and eventually they allowed her in, the first female Manji to be allowed into that status. Kunimitsu knew she owed a lot to the current Yoshimitsu, her entire life had changed for the better.

A single loud boom echoed in the building and all the Manji turned to its direction. There was a moment of silence before a voice called.

"Fret not!" the voice of Yoshimitsu called. "I have the situation at hand in control."

From the third floor Yoshimitsu reaffirmed his grip on De Marcos.

"I shall further state this question," he began. "compliance would be optimal."

"I'm not going to tell you shit," De Marcos let free a glob of spit onto Yoshimitsu's chest.

"Aha!" Yoshimitsu exclaimed. "Such a foul dialect, completed with a vile action," Yoshitmitsu shook his finger and his head. "Perhaps you require further persuasion" Yoshimitsu slowly drew his sword which glowed in the lamplight.

"Do your worse, I've dealt with criminals worst than you." De Marcos sneered.

"Criminal?" Yoshimitsu rolled the r. "Do you know what this weapon does? Yoshimitsu spoke upbeat as if talking to a child about a magic trick. "of course not but, it is a very marvelous indeed. It has the distinct power to tell whether a person has been virtuous or not," Yoshimitsu slowly swung the sword in front of De Marcos face. "everyone has committed some transgressions in his or her existence but, this sword has the astuteness to know whether or not the person is consumed by their sins or truly regretful of them," He paused allowing De Marcos to process the information. "Depending on the conclusion this sword draws, it will either create unbearable pain, and sometimes death, or if they are truly virtuous do naught, and everything in between. Like so," Yoshimitsu turned the sword to himself and stabbed himself in the shoulder, deep enough so that the hilt touched his shoulder, he held it there for a long moment, wiggled his fingers as if performing a magic trick and then removed the sword from his shoulder. "Now you see that stung slightly, which means there are sins I still need to atone for," he turned the sword to De Marcos "shall we observe what the sword thinks of you?" De Marcos watched the sword wide eyed, then turn his attention to Yoshimitsu's wound which healed almost instantly, then to Yoshimitsu's smiling, masked face. It was all too much to understand suddenly.

"It's in the basement," De Marcos admitted. "the whole thing is under this building." He excitedly stuttered.

"aha!" Exclaimed the head Manji. "The truth shows it's face. You have been most enlightening." Quickly he put his fingers in a contorted position and poked De Marcos in the neck, causing the man to crumble to the ground like a piece of paper. Yoshimitsu smiled to himself. "That solution is favorable every time."

On the first floor, Kunimitsu reluctantly checked some of the armed men's clothes for any clues that may prove to be useful later. Most of them were young adults with nothing on them but, I.D. and small amounts of money. The Manji weren't allowed to take this money, as an individual this man was probably poor, and though he was a criminal he was still a poor one. As a rule the Manji only stole from institutions that were affluent and not virtuous. However there were many organizations that worked with the Manji, over the years they had built relationships with corporations and from time to time used their expertise, or money to fund missions. Kunimitsu stood and looked outside, people were gathering, they had made enough noise to be found out, they would all need to leave soon.

"Just a little longer men," Kunimitsu said to the other Manji "We'll get out of here." She turned around to see if she could spot Yoshimitsu but, as she did he landed safely in front of her. The sudden appearance did nothing to surprise or startle her.

"I have procured the location of the money." He exclaimed to her excitedly. From within her mask she raised an eyebrow.

"Shall we get going?" Kunimitsu asked, the leader Manji nodded and smiled.

"After you," Yoshimitsu bowed, even within her mask he could tell she was scowling at him for the remark. "Chivalry dictates"

The leader Manji led the others into a basement, illuminated with ceiling bulbs and then electric torches. At first it appeared that they were getting close to their destination but, after ten minutes of walking it was apparent that the money was hidden further down than they thought. When they reached the end of the basement there was a large hole in the floor with a draft coming up.

"Down there?" one of the Manji asked.

"It appears so." Yoshimitsu half sighed, without much thought he jumped down the hole and the others followed. The hole fell three feet, and then went south for another ten feet before turning. There were small flares at each fifth foot interval. Eventually, after a total out eight minutes of walking they came to a door. Yoshimitsu handled it.

"What's wrong?" Kunimitsu asked when he didn't immediately open the door. Slowly he turned to the rest of them.

"The door," he started. "it is locked." He turned back to the door and jiggled the door knob to demonstrate.

"A big cavern underground, under a basement, under an abandoned warehouse," Kunimitsu commented. "and they still had the wisdom to lock the door." Yoshimitsu lifted his right hand and shook his finger.

"Cautious is the nervous man," Yoshimitsu began. "Uninvolved is the wise one…" Silently he redrew his sword and stabbed the door and cut an entrance with ease. When he kicked in the new entrance the inside was illuminated with many electric lights and flares.

"There it is." Kunimitsu blandly stated.

"Success!" Yoshimitsu exclaimed.

The group walked into the big cavern and took a look around, there was money all around. Most of it in bundles in plastic bags, some of them in chest a few just lying around. Yoshimitsu stood in the center of the room and the other Manji fanned out inspecting the money.

"I think there's more money here than we thought." One of the Manji spoke after a while. Yoshimitsu nodded his head.

"Indeed, it appears De Marcos was keeping this bounty from his friends as well," Yoshimitsu said. "Can we secure the lot of it?" He asked. Kunimitsu replied without turning away from her inspection.

"We should be able to," she sighed. "There's probably five hundred thousand in here." She finished.

"Good, let's secure this and escort it to the helicopter in a timely fashion."

With that the Manji began to pack the money into sacks they brought with them, the load would be heavy but, they were strong. The trouble was getting all the money out at one time, to return back for a second load could prove to be the difference between success and failure, not to mention the helicopter was on a schedule. Within fifteen minutes the Manji had packed up all the money, all carrying at least three loads, some carrying more. Yoshimitsu inspected their bounty to ensure it was all secure and they began back down the underground passage. They walked in silence as they began to exit but, when they came to climb back into the basement Yoshimitsu stopped walking.

"Hm," he hummed loudly. Kunimitsu shifted the heavy sacks on her back.

"What's wrong?" She asked slightly frustrated.

"I sense our friend De Marcos has not gone quietly into obscurity," He frowned, Kunimitsu did as well. "Instead I think he's gotten companions of his to meet us in our exit.". Yoshimitsu put his sacks onto the dirty floor.

"What should we do?" Kunimitsu asked.

"Remain here, I will inspect the area and deliver the verdict and a plan for escape to you when I have completed the initial task," He looked to his sacks on the ground. "Am I overstepping my politeness to ask the rest of you to carry my load?" Yoshimitsu sounded genuinely remorseful. Kunimitsu put her sacks down roughly.

"I think we can handle it," She spoke. "Get going". Yoshimitsu nodded, then turned away and jumped up through the hole into the basement.

The building was quiet and Yoshimitsu couldn't immediately sense that anyone was actual inside of it besides himself, Kunimitsu and the other Manji. He walked cautiously through the basement and eventually came to the first floor. The remains of the battle were still there, some comatose men, weapons strewn around but, nothing else. Eventually he came to the front door, the sun was bright outside and the heat was already beating down on him, he ignored it and slowly exited the building.

Outside it was silent save a cawing bird deep in the distance, however when he looked directly up the road he was met by the gaze of several dozen armed soldiers, at least two dozen patrol vehicles, two heavily armed soldiers and one very large armored tank. For a few seconds all of these things met Yoshimitsu gaze then he simply turned around calmly on his heels and reentered the building. Calmly walked to the basement, through the passage and eventually to the hole where the other Manji were waiting quietly.

"And?" Kunimitsu asked.

"It will be somewhat of a challenge," Yoshimitsu simply stated. "Come up here, we shall formulate a plan with haste." Kunimitsu looked at the other Manji and nodded before jumping through the hole. For three minutes the two leader Manji talked before Kunimitsu returned to the other Manji, without Yoshimitsu.

"What's the plan?" One Manji asked.

"Grab the money and come to the first floor," She began. "We'll wait for his signal there." She finished.

"What will his signal be?" The same Manji asked; Kunimitsu shrugged.

"He hadn't thought of it yet," She explained. "but he did say we'd know it when we saw it."

Upstairs Yoshimitsu exited the building again and walked into the middle of the road and faced the small armada again. For a few moments he squinted in the sun and watched them and they did the same to him.

"People of Guatemala!," Yoshimitsu called. "What is it that you want from me?" Silence echoed in the hot, dry wind. The men shifted slightly, the sound of a megaphone turning on cut through it.

"We want you to surrender yourself, your colleagues and any monies you have found." A male's amplified voice called.

"I shall surrender myself, however I am a lone warrior, I have no need for colleagues and I have already immolated all the money I discovered." Yoshimitsu called back. There was a brief murmur as the men argued over the definition of 'immolated'.

"Surrender the money immediately or you will be fired upon." The amplified voice spoke again.

"Impatience is a sin," Yoshimitsu muttered to himself. "I have an item of more value, for you to procure." He unsheathed his sword and held it high above his head. The amplified voice screamed something in Spanish but, cut itself off before it could be complete. All the soldiers pointed their guns in Yoshimitsu direction, the tank seemed to readjust itself as well. Yoshimitsu took a deep breath.

The cannon fired but, like static Yoshimitsu faded from his position. As the smoke cleared it was apparent Yoshimitsu had gone. The Amplified voice returned and called for the soldiers to find him. Cautiously the Manji reappeared behind the heavy armored guards. Slowly he stalked looking at their equipment. Both men were under a thick, heavy plate of armor with a gatlin gun strapped on their backs, the equipment was heavy and flammable.

"Good luck, dear soul!" Yoshimitsu proclaimed as he slashed upwards and into the air. Surprisingly the armored man turned quickly and aimed the gun up at Yoshimitsu letting loose a barrage of bullets but, again Yoshimitsu vanished in thin air just as the pack on the man's back exploded violently.

In the building Kunimitsu began to move, she turned to the other Manji.

"That's it!" she proclaimed. "Let's go"

Yoshimitsu landed a few feet away and took advantage of the stunned guards, knocking them over and slashing precisely with his sword knocking them out. Eventually the other caught wind of Yoshimitsu's appearance and began to attack but, his fighting didn't waver, he expertly moved between enemies and dispatched them with a expert skill. He fought with his sword utilizing not only the blade but, the blunt hilt as well. Jumping, kicking and punching easily making his way across the street, while keeping a steady eye on Kunimitsu's progress. Eventually she and the other Manji were on a truck with all of the money, she stuck her head out the window looking for Yoshimitsu, when she found him she nodded and he signaled west for her to go, she nodded again and the truck careened down the road and to the west.

With no delay, Yoshimitsu ran in the same direction towards an alley. At the end of the alley he should be on the same road with the truck and manage to jump onto the back and make a quick getaway. With startling speed Yoshimitsu ran towards and into the alley, his feet moving like blurs of light, that no human being could ever replicate. Bullets still danced around him but, the soldiers were lost behind him. At the end of the alley Yoshimitsu saw the truck speed down the road. At this point he knew he was falling behind, he picked up his speed and exited the alley trying to catch up with the truck.

"Shouldn't we slow down?" One Manji asked, Kunimitsu shook her head.

"No, He'll catch up," she said. "There are too many of them on us," She sighed, but turned to the Manji. "Trust him, he knows what he's doing."

His feet pounded on the ground like tiny hammers, speeding along at a speed unknown to be utilized by man. He took his sword and sheathed it using his arms to help propel him forward. In his mind he joke to himself whether or not the Manji in the truck were trying to get away from him, the truck didn't seem to slow at all as he ran almost at top speed to catch up to it. He could see Kunimitsu poked her head out the window and signaled to him to hurry on. He chuckled, she then turned her face from the road and nodded. The truck began to slow and slowly his body began to catch up to the back of the truck where some Manji had their hands extended to pull him in. His feet moved quicker and he was at arms length. Kunimitsu turned to face him again but, even at the distance and with her mask on he could see the shock on her body. Abruptly she tossed the truck away from the Manji leader and Yoshimitsu dug his heels into the ground, anticipating the blast. With no other choice he pushed off his heals and flipped backwards. Just as he pulled it off, the explosion cratered the ground and knocked Yoshimitsu off course and into the ground.

Kunimitsu regained control of the truck and looked in the rear view mirror. In it she could see the tank had chased them down and the other trucks were gaining on them.

"Hold on," She warned. The truck turned again violently, cutting off the path of one of their followers. She could see they were close to the helipad, all the had to do was make it there. The enemy truck crashed right into their back causing the Manji's truck to skip of the ground and shake violently. Kunimitsu cursed in her mind but, kept her composure. She could see another truck was pulling up to her side, if they got boxed in, she wasn't sure how they'd get out of it. Kunimitsu gripped the wheel strongly thinking of what to do, just as she did the other truck pulled up right next to them. She could see the passengers pulling out guns ready to fire on them. She threw the wheel in their direction and the two trucks collided. The passengers fumbled with their weapons at the blow buying them some time, it wasn't long until they were readying their weapons again, the truck behind them pushed them forward, she wasn't going to be able to swerve into them again. Their weapons raised, their trigger fingers twitched-

Suddenly Yoshimitsu appeared onto the back of the enemy truck and his sword sliced majestically from foe to foe, the gun fire rang out but none of it hit the Manji truck. With ease Yoshimitsu stabbed into the driver side of the truck, the driver went limp and the truck began to turn off the road into a building.

"Do not slow down!" He called as the truck got closer to the building and eventually crashed into it. In the rearview mirror she could see he jumped in time to the back truck. Again his sword danced around cutting his enemies down, eventually the truck began to pull to the side as well. In her mask Kunimitsu smiled.

"Not bad" She said to one of the Manji. With a thud Yoshimitsu was on the hood of their truck, she put her head out the window.

"You will have to safely get to the helicopter yourself, I will concern myself with that tank." Yoshimitsu explained, Kunimitsu nodded and pressed on the gas, just as Yoshimitsu vanished again.

"Be careful" she muttered.

His hand grabbed an apparatus on the tank and held on to it for dear life. The speed at which they were moving was creating so much wind that he was almost instantly blown off. He took his sword and sheath it quickly. On either side of the tank a truck was escorting and firing upon him, he ignored them as he tried to figure out how to open the tank's hatch and get inside. He pulled relentlessly until finally the hatch popped open, inside a man looked up just as Yoshimitsu grabbed him and threw him off the side.

Slickly Yoshimitsu jumped into the seat and was welcomed by an array of buttons, levers and lights. Solemnly he frowned as he realized that this particularly piece of machinery was not one he knew how to control. Haphazardly he began to push and pull, attempting to at least turn the tank one direction. At its current course and speed it would eventually catch up to Kunimitsu and the Manji and run it off the road. There wouldn't be an opportunity to stop and unload. It was crucial that he do something to move this tank elsewhere or at least slow it down.

In the near distance Yoshimitsu could see the helipad and the chopper blades spinning. He wasn't sure if was coming or going but, either way they had to hurry up. Yoshimitsu slammed his hands on the controls but, nothing appeared to happen.

"Confounded!" Yoshimitsu spat. There wasn't enough time to play around with the controls anymore. Quickly he jumped out of the drivers seat and back onto the top of the tank. There were three trucks still in pursuit, they were close by as well. For a moment Yoshimitsu took the time to think for a moment and the suddenly had a thought.

He jumped off the tank, vanished and landed on the nearest truck, he avoided the men and positioned himself in front of the driver side door. He punched the window and shattered it easily before grabbing the driver by the collar.

"Pardon me," Yoshimitsu called as he grabbed him, he pulled him roughly out of the car and jumped into the driver's seat. The other men turned their guns to him but, Yoshimitsu was quick to spin the car into the direction he wanted and jammed the acceleration. The men shot but, by the time they got their wits about them he had vanished into thin air.

He knelt on the side of the tank, and watched as the truck drove itself right in front of the tank. The impact rattled him slightly and knocked the other men out of the truck but, the tank just barreled on pushing the truck with it. Yoshimitsu frowned again and jumped off the tank.

This time he appeared right in the passenger seat, the driver jumped at his sudden appearance.

"Aha!" He exclaimed. "Don't mind me." Quickly he slammed his palm into the driver's chest, causing him to instantly pass out, his head landing on the horn, it let out a loud, continuous groan. Yoshimitsu reached over and pulled the wheel, causing the car to spin the other direction, the jerk startled Yoshimitsu for a moment and then, like magic, he vanished again.

More calmly he appeared sitting Indian style on the tank's cannon. Yoshimitsu watched as the other truck pulled in front of the tank, the first truck and collided. This time the tank shook violently and began to groan. He could see the Manji truck pulling off slightly, the tank was slowing. This way they could get away, his plan had worked, proudly he smiled to himself and literally pat himself on the back.

For no reason, other than curiosity he turned to see what the last truck was doing. It was then that he saw the two men positioning the large RPG. There wasn't enough time to react before he could even piece together what was about to happen, the rocket was flying through the air on a collision course with the tank.

The explosion was so powerful it blew out the back window of the Manji truck causing Kunimitsu to swerve abruptly, almost losing control.

"Hold on" She snapped as she tugged the truck back into control. She looked in the rearview mirror to see the fire and smoke engulf the body of the tank, causing the tank to tip over and crash violently into the ground. She held her mouth tight and gritted her teeth, she knew Yoshimitsu was on the tank.

"What about Yoshi?!" one of the Manji asked. Kunimitsu shook her head.

"We're only to get to the helicopter," She spoke stern and slowly. "Hold on, I'm going to pull us in." She tossed the car, harshly and the Manji recoiled. The truck careened onto the helipad and screeched to a halt. The Manji jumped out with Kunimitsu and the pilot of the helicopter came out to meet them.

"Where the hell have you been!?" the pilot screamed over the motor.

"We have to take off now!" Kunimitsu screamed louder.

"Where is Yosh-" The pilot began.

"NOW!" she reaffirmed. The pilot nodded and ran back into the helicopter. Kunimitsu went back to the truck and began unloading the sacks of money onto the helicopter. It only took a few minutes to get them all on and slowly it began to pull off the ground.

Inside Kunimitsu sat and watched as the ground got further and further. Her mind fell on Yoshimitsu, he was down there somewhere, and he'd have to find his way back somehow. Over the speaker the pilot spoke.

"We'll be at the first drop off in about an hour." He spoke. Kunimitsu stood; the other Manji watched her, eyes heavy. She slowly and silently walked to the cockpit; she knocked on the door once. The door opened and Yoshimitsu stepped out.

"Aha!" He exclaimed at Kunimitsu. "What took you so long?"

By the time the group returned to Japan most of the money had been distributed. There were a total of four stops before Japan, from those four stops the money would split four more ways, then again, then again. Eventually a good portion of money would have been sent to some poor people or communities that needed it most. Whatever was left came back to the Manji village and was dispersed to the neighboring village. That village was poor but, the people made due with what they had, most went into the city to beg, or to work jobs that didn't pay much. Overall the people were happy though, good relations with the Manji allowed them to stay afloat, no one went hungry and no one lived in decadence.

Yoshimitsu enjoyed the village, particularly the company of the young men, often he would travel with them to the city and watch Sumo wrestling matches on the television or go to arcades and play video games with them. Initially his social relationship with the people bothered the elders of the Manji clan, no Yoshimitsu had integrated himself with the people as much as he had, it seemed odd for their fearless leader to go to arcades with the young men at first but, after some time no harm came out of it and it only deepened the relationship.

That wasn't to say that Yoshimitsu wasn't the oddest of all the leaders. Flamboyant and humorous, he often joked around in ways a leader normally didn't. His increasing joy of being with the people only further proved to his Manji peers that the status 'Yoshimitsu' hadn't affected him much. In the inner city Yoshimitsu was somewhat of a popular figure too, young gangs had sprouted up, often attacking other young people. Unfortunately for them these places were also the places where Yoshimitsu and his peers recreated, it was not uncommon for Yoshimitsu to have to straighten some young thugs out during his relaxing periods. Because of that the gangs hung out more often where Yoshimitsu was bound to frequent, only to prove that they weren't afraid of the Manji but, each and every time a problem arose between he and the gangs they were quickly dispatched.

Kunimitsu wasn't a fan of playing around with the gangs, more often than not she reminded Yoshimitsu that they were money stealers, like the other criminals they fought against. Yoshimitsu reminded her that they were young and knew no better, and that a few good thrashings would discourage them. Either way she rarely accompanied him into the city, she liked the Manji village and spent most of her time reading, training or spending time with her elderly grandfather. Because of this most of the Manji considered her to be more in power than she really was, Yoshimitsu spent time at the village but, not much. He did all his investigations and missions personally, either with or without the task force. Every so often he would return to the village to deliver a speech on the nature of the Manji and their status but, he did not linger long.

This was the only complaint some Manji had against their leader, that he wasn't present enough, sometimes it felt as if he was a visitor to the village, in the past the Yoshimitsu were very close the village and the people.

"I do not wish my presence to become grave…" He explained to Kunimitsu once. "I accepted this honor because I wished to serve my people as profoundly as I could. The suggestion that I am of more importance than any other being is absurd and so I remain scarce to not remind my brothers constantly of my role."

She knew he was telling her the truth, before he became the leader he wanted to be as plebian as possible no matter what prestige enchanted him and so it made no sense for him to change now. Ultimately Yoshimitsu wanted to end the Manji clan and reinsert them into the general populace. The segregation bothered him but, he knew it existed so that they may do the right thing but, he didn't enjoy being the group of people who lurked in the shadows. Some called the Manjis a 'Robin Hood' style gang, deep down this bothered him, despite the fact that it was true. There were people out there who needed to be adjusted but for every battle they fought another group of people were alienated by their actions.

Yoshimitsu didn't wish to continue this act of stealing from the rich forever, at least not as frequently as he was doing it now. Eventually he wished for things to smooth out so that society would fix itself every once in a while ad for that to happen people had to _want_ to fix things and not rely on the Manji to fix things for them. Until then he had duties and with duties came recreation.

The arcade was always arid, smoke billowed in from underage smokers, sweat collected in the air from hours of vigorous playing, the smell of food and desperation lingered. Most of the kids in the arcades had been there all day, not a few hours. Ignoring school, work or whatever other responsibilities they had. It was a den of delinquents, kids who quit, kids who wanted to quit and kids who wouldn't quit. However none of them were truly dangerous. Some gang members who'd hold up an unarmed woman, or taunt a police officer but, no one willing to do anything truly heinous. That being said, they needed to appear that way to the other kids, they had to be as powerful as the heroes and villains in the games they were playing. There were a few good kids, mostly the ones who worked there, who kept things in line and they were respected as they could decide to shut the shop down at any point and then there were the stale kids who just sat there and watched the others play without a cent to their names. There was a hierarchy inside, and everyone abided by it, though every so often a coup would be plotted and implemented but for the most part, everyone knew their place.

When Yoshimitsu came in though, things changed. The bullies squirmed a little at his sight, the tough guys cowered without looking like they were cowering. In the back room the handful of Manji who came with Yoshimitsu, a few workers and occasionally the owner would sit around and talk about Manji exploits or the newest games but, most of the time they'd watch Sumo Wrestling.

The sport of Sumo wrestling was a slight obsession of Yoshimitsu, even as a little boy he was enamored with the excitement. Despite his serious duties as the leader of the Manji Yoshimitsu spent a lot of time watching and catching up with the events of the Sumo. His fellow Manji made fun of his extreme liking of the sport but, it bothered him none and whenever he got the chance he enjoyed himself.

Today was one of those days.

As he walked into the arcade two boys, one with a Mohawk and one with tattoos covering his face were arguing over the results of some virtual battle. That argument became a shoving match and when the Mohawk boy got tired of shoving went to throw a punch. The fist flew but when Yoshimitsu entered, the fist stopped mid-air and laid silently next to the tattooed boys face. The two adolescences stood silently looking at Yoshimitsu as he walked in, they blinked in silence.

"Camaraderie at its peak I trust…" Yoshimitsu spoke as he walked in and moved the Mohawk boy's arm down to his side and propped the tattooed boy in a formal standing position. Both boys frowned and went their opposite ways when Yoshimitsu continued on.

"Yoshi!" Another young man exclaimed, the Manji leader smiled and embraced the young man.

"Yudeki, I thought you only worked on Thursdays" Yoshimitsu inquired.

"Not this week, my father asked me in today," Yudeki explained. "Are you here to watch the match?" he asked.

"Affirmative," Yoshimitsu confirmed. "I've been most apprehensive for this next round of battles." The two walked through the crowd while the Manji who came along either dispersed to games or followed behind.

"You're rooting for that new guy right?" Yudeki asked, opening the door to the back room.

"Indeed I am." When the door opened smoke billowed out and the smell of tobacco wafted out, like a flood through paper. The older men smoked inside the room, but when Yoshimitsu walked in they instantly put out their cigarettes.

"Yoshi!" the some dozen men exclaimed in unison, some tossing their cigarettes out the window.

"What cluster of villainy and scum have I stumbled into?" Yoshimitsu mused, the men laughed joyfully.

"Scum?" one of the men exclaimed. "I guess you don't want to watch the game then." The men cackled and Yoshimitsu sat. Another Manji entered after him.

"Oh!" another man called. "He's brought Tseng with him too," he mocked. "what's the special occasion? No banks to be robbin' today?"

"Actually we just finished a job" Tseng answered.

Tseng was the third in command, leader of the task force. It was often but, not always that Yoshimitsu and/or Kunimitsu would join the task force on jobs but, when they didn't Tseng was the one who went on every mission and helped plan the tactical portions. Tseng was a good friend of Yoshimitsu, they were both trained by the same man and served in the early task force together. Tseng and Kunimitsu were friends too but, not very much the same, while she was reserved Tseng was slightly more outgoing but, the three of them made a great tactical team.

"And you made it just in time for this weeks match?" the man asked. "convenient."

"Well if it weren't for Yoshi, I think we'd still be there." Tseng admitted.

"Well, the best time to travel with this character is when there's a match, He'll scoop everybody up, with the money and hightail it back here all by himself!" All the man laughed and Yoshimitsu made a mocking gesture at them before making on to the television.

"This discussion is endearing but, it's about time we started." He called, a young behind him flicked the television on with the remote control.

"Your waitin' for that junior match right?" the man asked.

"Indeed, it promises to be quick but, exhilarating"

"That's all the way at the end," the man said slowly. "we all know how Yoshi's Sumo patience is…" the men cackled again.

"Oh enough!" the Manji spoke loudly but, still friendly. "The matches have started."

As the matches went on the men got louder, and the conversations stirred back up. Yoshimitsu from time to time would smack his hand on the table in mock frustration or excitement. The men talked about the sumos and their stats and who they thought deserved the title of _Yokozuna_, the most prestigious and highest title in Sumo wrestling. As the matches progressed they became more vigorous and tense, during the really tense matches the men would stop talking, sometimes in mid sentence and inch closer to the screen unsure of what the outcome was to be. Towards the end of the hour the commercials came more frequently.

"Confounded!" Yoshimitsu exclaimed, when a commercial came on. "A further set of commercials!?" the men laughed at Yoshimitsu's apparent frustration.

"So who are you gunning for again Yoshi?" Tseng asked. "That new guy?" Yoshimitsu nodded and lightly tapped his hand on the table.

"I have not seen a participant as skillful as he." Yoshimitsu explained.

"What's his name again?" Tseng asked.

"Ganryu" Yoshimitsu answered. "If he ends in success tonight he will be on the path to becoming Yokozuna" Yoshimitsu speculated.

"He's not that good," A man disagreed. "His been winning a lot lately but, I don't know, something about that guy I don't like."

"Oh hush!" Yoshimitsu shunned. "You're jealousy is apparent, you're going to be giving him ample competition soon." Yoshimitsu tapped the man's bulging belly and all the men laughed. The program came back on and Yoshimitsu fell into silence and the men watched intently.

In the end Ganryu was successful and Yoshimitsu was satisfied. When all was doe the Arcade was closed and the Manji returned to the village in the bleak of night. At the Village most people were resting, sound asleep.

Kunimitsu stood in the meeting area alone, illuminated by fire. When Yoshimitsu entered she didn't turn to face him. From he stance he could sense something was and instantly began to regret his night of recreation. She sat on her knees meditating to the wall, something they were taught to do in times of peril, Yoshimitsu quietly stood beside her and slowly knelt with her and began his prayer and meditation. The two sat there in total silence for ten minutes before Yoshimitsu spoke.

"Your quandary?" Yoshimitsu asked quietly. Kunimitsu sighed quietly and raised her head too look at the wall ahead of her. Slower still she turned to the Manji leader.

"My Grandfather…" she started. The last former Yoshimitsu. She paused, Yoshimitsu felt a slight disturbance in his heart and mind. He was fond of the man, what could it be?

"Yes?" He coaxed. The yellow flames flickered just as her red hair swung as she turned her face to look him in the eye. The light caused her skin to glow red slightly, and danced playfully in the tears in her eyes.

"He's Dying."


	6. 19 Years Before Tekken I

The quiet pitter patter of the rain onto the roof of the car rhythmically knocked away, like a quiet secret between the elements and the vehicle. Coupled with the sound of the windshield wipers slowly churning to and fro and the low hum of the engine the inside of the car was awash with quiet noises, it was both a symphony of sounds and a vacuum of silence. In the passenger seat Heihachi frowned at the red light keeping them from going forward again, even through the beads of rain on the window shield he could see the time on the large electric billboard. Four-forty three, he was thirteen minutes late. Slightly he looked at the new driver; his hands were gripped on the wheel as if holding for dear life. Heihachi sympathized in his mind, he was only a kid and was sitting next to the most powerful man in Japan, and it made sense for him to be nervous. Not to mention Heihachi's terrible track-record with drivers. In five years he had had thirty one drivers and only twelve of those had been fired or quit. The others were killed or injured so badly they had to be let go, and each time Heihachi had to devote another portion of Zaibatsu money to compensating the injured or their families. A lot of the board members weren't enjoying seeing the sums of money Heihachi felt obligated to be giving out. There was always the option of driving himself but, he wasn't very good at that, he was always a step behind the information, barely catching up on the drive to the meeting.

The light turned green but, the car didn't move for a moment. Heihachi turned on his head to the driver to see if he was alright. Not looking at Heihachi, the driver, startled, slammed on the gas and the car jumped forward and then slowed, jostling Heihachi.

"I'm sorry Mr. Mishima" The driver said in a stutter, Heihachi formulated his papers again and nodded.

"It's alright," he reassured the man, slowly he turned to the backseat. "Everything alright back here?" He asked. From within in seatbelt constraints Kazuya leaned forward slightly and smiled.

"It was kind of like that rollercoaster we were on last year!" Kazuya emphatically recalled, Heihachi smiled at his son's indirect and unintentional negative evaluation of the driver's abilities.

"Yeah and I'll be glad when we get out of this, just like I was when we got off that thing." Heihachi frowned slightly at the other boy's evaluation, he was like that: blunt and judgmental, always looking at something with a discerning eye.

"We're almost there Lee," Heihachi nodded. "In fact I can see it from here."

The Chinese boy gave Heihachi an incredulous look which Heihachi instantly turned away from to avoid any more of his disapproving nature. Even so the boy sat in the back seat next to Kazuya with a disapproving look at the back of Heihachi's seat.

After recovering from the incident in China, Heihachi sought out the boy who helped save his life; his name was Lee Chaolan and had, in fact, sought out Heihachi for his payment. Heihachi found the boy's relentless nature to be endearing and instead wished to put his parents on the Zaibatsu payroll, offering a job for both of them with a considerable cash advance and accelerated hourly wage, Lee backed down from this offer with direct force which Heihachi chalked up to the lack of wisdom in youth but, no sooner than Heihachi was able to stand Jinrei looked into the boy's background and found that both his parents were killed in gang related events in southern China and he had, in fact, been living on the street as a criminal stealing, money and food to survive.

Knowing this Heihachi felt responsible for the child, and since there was nowhere to go that very night Heihachi found out, he took Lee home with him. The arrangement was to be temporary but, after a short amount of time Kazuya took to Lee and a friendly rivalry between the two picked up. Seeing this Heihachi surmised that a little pull from Lee's end would help Kazuya progress and try harder, so after six months Heihachi officially adopted Lee.

Not too much to Heihachi's surprise Lee was fine with the adoption so long as Heihachi understood he wasn't his real father. The two made a silent agreement to that fact and respected each other mutually that way. Lee was strong minded, something Heihachi thought Kazuya lacked, Heihachi wondered how Kazuya would be as a successor to the Zaibatsu with such 'soft skin' but, saw many of those qualities in Lee however and kept that in mind.

Jinpachi didn't mind, in fact he liked Lee quite a bit and Jinrei did as well, often joking that since the boy was a Chinese national he should have adopted him. Together Heihachi and the two boys made a family, if not a slightly dilapidated one.

Today they were traveling on Zaibatsu business together because Heihachi didn't have a babysitter to watch the pair of them, he didn't like bringing them along only because, he knew it bored them and they were supposed to be doing things children did. Either way there wasn't much of a choice for Heihachi but, to bring them along and keep the meeting at a minimum.

The car lurched into a turn and pulled into a building before coming to a stop. Before the car fully paused the driver had unfastened his safety belt and jumped out of the car. Heihachi watched his frantic pace as he came around to his side. Eying him Heihachi unfastened his safety belt and opened his door just before the driver could.

"It's alright Yu," Heihachi patted his shoulder and turned to the backdoor and opened it. "Alright, out you come!" He groaned as he grabbed Kazuya and pulled him out the car gently, then did again for Lee. The two boys looked up at him with a certain expression in their eyes. "I know…" Heihachi sighed. "I promise this won't take long."

"That's what you said last time." Lee spoke; Heihachi gave a disappointed frown to Lee.

"Was last time that long?"

"Two hours." Lee recited,

"Really?" Heihachi asked, looking at Kazuya for confirmation.

"Yep" Kazuya chimed in.

"Well two hours is quick compared to how long those kinds of meetings usually last…" His voiced trailed off.

"It's still long for us." Lee explained.

"Well up there," He pointed to an office. "There's a set of televisions and a VCR, you can watch whatever it is you would want to watch at this time." Heihachi offered.

"We don't have any tapes" Kazuya denied.

"I can have Yu go to the video store and get some that you like." Heihachi reoffered

"If Yu has time to get us movies and we watch them then this meeting is going to take a long time…" Lee surmised. Heihachi frowned at Lee's deduction.

"What if I l tell Yu to get Pizza too?" Heihachi bribed.

"Pepperoni?" Kazuya asked.

"Whatever will keep you from being horribly bored."

"Fine" Lee agreed. Heihachi nodded and ruffled both Lee and Kazuya's hair before going to Yu and asking for the favor with the kids. The man seemed surprised that Heihachi was talking to him and when Heihachi handed Yu the money Yu seemed as if he was going to faint.

"It's alright, just have fun." Heihachi smiled and tapped the man on the back before going deeper into the building.

When he walked through the door the sound of machinery flooded his ears, so much so that it surprised him. He'd been here several times but, he couldn't recall it ever being this loud. As he walked into the hall several men turned to face him and two quickly ran up to him.

"Mr. Mishima!" one of the men spoke. "You're here" He handed Heihachi a hardhat; the second man put large sound sheilders in his hands, which Heihachi proceeded to put over his ears.

"Indeed," Heihachi looked around. "Are these machines running on some different sort f setting than the last time I was here?" Heihachi asked. The man nodded and ushered Heihachi forward.

"Yes they are," He paused gesturing around to the machines that pumped and pulled and made horrible noises, offensive to the senses. "Abel insisted we work them the max capacity." Heihachi turned from the machines and looked into the man's face.

"Abel?" Heihachi asked with a degree of disapproval.

"Yes, he's been here at least seven times this week overseeing…" the man paused and made an expression that adequately conveyed his being dumbfounded. "Everything!"

"Has he changed any of the programs?" Heihachi asked.

"Almost all of them, the workers are scrambling to get his new systems down before he comes back here with another list of demands," The man paused again but, this time took a deep breath as if he was about to do something that frightened him. "I understand the Zaibatsu wants this project down in a timely fashion but, we can only do so much." The man continued. Heihachi put a hand up for him to stop talking but, also nodded softly.

"I know," Heihachi explained. "Everyone is overworked and Abel isn't the easiest person to work with." Heihachi admitted.

"Well what we're having the most trouble with is the hydraulics," the man spoke more confidently. "The data processing and everything else isn't complete but is coming together but, the hydraulics are way off."

"How bad is it?" Heihachi asked, the man took off his hard hat and scratched the top of his head.

"The metal we're using for the infrastructure is heavy enough as it is but, the exterior armor is much heavier, on the first couple of runs appendages that had exterior armor on top of it broke apart." He returned the hard hat to his head, Heihachi sighed.

"What else?" Heihachi asked reading the man's eyes.

"Well," He paused for a moment, formulating his words. "I don't know much about problem solving systems but, I imagine they should work when implemented." He began.

"What do you mean?"

"Three weeks ago Abel came here and installed a Beta system for the machine's master systems; he told us it was going to be a bunch of simple things, like moving around and turning parts of its body. Well he gave us a list of commands it should understand and in the first couple of days we ignored it, still trying to get the arms and legs to stay on, anyway we started inputting the commands and it didn't work. We'd say 'take this' and the optics would look at the object but, sometimes it wouldn't accept the commands sometimes it would but, we couldn't figure out what the difference between it accepting the command and not taking it." The man explained.

"Did you call Abel?" Heihachi asked, the man nodded emphatically.

"Of course, he was the first person we called but," the man shrugged. "He told us we must have been doing something wrong and not to bother him." Heihachi rubbed his forehead.

"He can be a pain." Heihachi admitted.

"You're telling me," The man shook his head. "It's not us; the program he put in is skittish at best." The man explained.

"He's the best at these sorts of things, I can't imagine it'd be faulty," Heihachi paused. "Though I don't think it's something you're doing wrong either." He sighed again, he wanted to leave.

Despite what the board initially thought Mishima Heavy Industries was a success, as Heihachi predicted the money spent on having external cooperation's build their products was cut drastically and the state of the art technology they were using had many companies coming to Heavy Industries to create their products. It was a huge success but the JACK project was a money guzzler. Heihachi had signed on Abel to work on the systems for the program, he was the best of the best and if anyone had a reasonable chance at success it was Abel but, he was eccentric and harsh. He demanded an astronomical pay which Heihachi refused to pay and demanded the most from the Zaibatsu workers. Initially Heihachi left the project in Abel's care but, after a handful of workers surprised him with lawsuits claiming the breaking of labor laws. Abel apparently had them working for twenty plus hours under horrible conditions. Heihachi settled out of court with the workers and took back control of the program overseeing the working with Abel as a high priority member. It didn't matter much to Abel though; he was just as rude and rash with Heihachi as anyone else. Abel constantly reminded Heihachi of the incident where Heihachi found a skeleton rendering of a JACK in China, Abel insisted if another company or cooperation put out a JACK before the Zaibatsu did he would take off with his pay and wanted his name erased from the project totally.

Heihachi didn't take the charge too seriously, it was one of those issue where he proclaimed that he'd 'cross that bride' when he found it. Heihachi knew there was someone out there who had tried to (any may still be trying) create a JACK based on information stolen from the Zaibatsu years ago. The results of that investigation failed to yield any results always leading to a dead end.

The board wasn't impressed with the JACK program, government contracts were like gold but, weren't worth the entire sacrifice of the Zaibatsu. Abel had yielded some results but not nearly as much as one would expect from the dollar amount spent on the program, the Japanese government was also unhappy with the JACK program feeling it would serve as a personal army for the Zaibatsu, though Heihachi insisted to them that it wasn't going to be of that scale or nature.

Either way it was a stress point for Heihachi, he didn't enjoy these kinds of meetings and checking up on things. He didn't know anything about robotics but, the men who worked on them wanted to meet with Heihachi as much as possible and as little with Abel as could be done.

"Alright," Heihachi spoke. "take me to it" The man nodded and lead the way, briefly Heihachi looked back and saw the car with Kazuya and Lee leaving, he remembered the video rental place was a few streets north, it would take them time to pick a movie, Kazuya and Lee weren't of the same brand so a consensus would be difficult to achieve.

In a far storage room, about two yards wide and long, the men walked to an operating table where the skeleton figure laid upright like an attentive person. It was somewhat off-putting to see it that way; he walked over to it and watched it.

"The program can recognize people as human beings, so it should react to you." The man explained. "However it does have a hard time recognizing people with fat around the waist area." The man admitted, Heihachi frowned.

"Why is that?"

"Well Abel said it can recognize itself and as it's only a skeleton it recognize that general shape which is similar to a human being. People with fat around the waist aren't of that same general shape so the machine can't process it." The man explained.

"How did you discover this?" Heihachi asked, the man chuckled.

"Well in the initial days of its functionality we were all a little creeped out that it would follow us around with its optics but, Duncan said it never followed him," the man chuckled again. "Duncan is of a larger stature, we called Abel and he explained with no regard for Duncan's sanity." The man fell into seriousness.

"I see," Heihachi waved his hand's in front of the premature robot's mechanical face, they eyes followed his hand. "What commands work?" Heihachi asked.

"It never seems to pass up the chance to arm wrestle." The man explained.

"Wrestle?" Heihachi asked incredulously.

"Abel says he wanted to test out the capabilities for battle without exhausting the system and the arm wrestling seemed to be the most practical way to test strength. It has the ability to 'remember' the wrestler and test for strengths and weaknesses just based on the shape of the hand." The man explained, Heihachi grunted quietly.

"Alright" He put his hand out.

"Abel was really adamant that we only let strong people wrestle the machine, he mentioned it may have some discretion issues." The man warned, Heihachi nodded and looked the man in the eye and grasped the machine's hand.

"Do I need to give some sort of command?" Heihachi asked, the man shook his head.

"You need only apply a firm grip." The man instructed.

Heihachi did so and not long after he applied a grip the machine reacted and turned it's optics to Heihachi. Heihachi knew strength so he went easy on the machine, apply only as much pressure as he thought the strongest man in the building could have. The machine was surprisingly strong applying equal amounts of pressure back but, never any more than what Heihachi gave.

"How do you disengage?" Heihachi asked. The man looked at the robot puzzled.

"Abel says it computes your output strength and from that logically assets your full strength, from that it should just beat you within a margin of your maximum capabilities. It should only take a few seconds; I can't see why it's still engaging you…" The man explained. Heihachi looked into the machine's eyes and it did the same to Heihachi. For a moment he felt as if there was something else going on in there. That the system was working in ways they hadn't predicted but, just as that thought passed through his mind the grip from the robot released and the arm stiffened.

Slowly Heihachi took back his hand and rubbed it, more out of routine than soreness. When he looked around the men in the area were all staring at him.

"What's the problem?" Heihachi asked, the lead man scoffed.

"We've never seen it do that before…" he explained.

"Do what?" Heihachi asked. "Let go?"

"Yes," the man said baffled. "Like I said it computes your maximum strength to an estimate and then proceeds to win the game, it's never just disengaged before." The man explained.

"Perhaps it was confused by the make of my hand." Heihachi suggested. The man shook his head.

"Not likely, we've had it wrestle almost everyone in this building and it's never done that." The man explained, Heihachi frowned and waved off the comment.

"Maybe it's not working" Heihachi muttered, the man shrugged and gestured further into the room.

"Well that's the most successful version, this one here doesn't fair as well." The man began, Heihachi followed. In a similar way another robot sat up, this one looked identical to the other one except its left hand which was encased with a thick layer of armor.

"Is that the kind of metal we're using?" Heihachi asked, the man nodded.

"Yes it is, we use this one primarily to try and figure out how to rig the machine to support the weight, and so far we haven't had too much luck." The man explained.

"Because of the weight?" Heihachi asked.

"Primarily," the man started. "We're also having a hard time rigging up the armor to the skeleton. The schematics are overly simplified, the armor is so thick that when it's put in the skeleton moves at the right coordinates but, misses its mark by a few inches because of the armor." The man explained.

"That wasn't addressed by Abel?" Heihachi asked.

"No," The man exerted frustrated. "He insists it's not a flaw in his design." Heihachi rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Does this one have a demonstration?" he asked, the man smiled.

"Of course," he walked over and pulled something off the table. "This one has even simpler encoding, we use the clapping command primarily since we haven't even begun to work on the problems in the legs," The man explained. "The one thing we were really impressed with is how the systems clearly pick up voices and commands without too much issue. Despite the problems we had with the other one, it's not usual for a system as complicated as that to come together so quickly." Heihachi nodded.

"We're still behind though," Heihachi spoke solemnly.

"We're trying," the man sighed. "So for this we only have to say the command simply, it uses one of those high complexity systems to determine if its being talk to, referred to or mentioned it. So right not if I said we're going to demonstrate its capacity to clap…"

Behind the man the arms of the machine twitched to life and the right arm moved to the center of its body but, the left, armored, arm twitched in place.

"As you can see the armor is holding it down. We've tried everything to fix this problem, reinforcing the skeleton, using thinner layers of the armor, even trying to create a way to retract the armor but, nothing works." The man explained.

"Abel called me to tell me that he's doing something to alter the molecular structure of the metal, synthesizing it to make it lighter." Heihachi muttered a bit not knowing what he was saying, all of this technical jargon was above him and uninteresting. He wanted to go back to reading.

In the recent years he had uncovered a new treasure trove of books documenting spirits and mystical forces. The readings were tough and many of them totally incomplete but, through work in the Zaibatsu he was able to track down adjoining books and scholars. Through his research he found new ways of meditation and understanding but, in the much he had read he had only received few, general answers. Most of the books were superstitious readings, explaining spells and witchcraft and all those things that Heihachi felt were nonsense but, in them he found bits and clues about things he had only heard of in passing.

He spent a lot of his time reading, so much so that Zaibatsu work often got in the way and aggravated him. On any given free day he would read twelve to twenty-two hours a day nonstop, he wanted to hire an assistant so he could spend more time reading but, if the driving job was so dangerous no one was going to sign up to be Heihachi's assistant.

"If he's able to do that that'd be amazing," the man marveled.

"Well at this point we're so behind schedule there's only a handful of supporters for this program at the time" Heihachi explained, the man nodded understandingly.

"I know it doesn't mean much but, we have made breakthroughs in this program," The man assured. "Some of the stuff Abel has shown us is beyond anything I could have ever imagined all we need is to get it to work."

"I'm confident you will," Heihachi gave a brief smile and quickly glanced out the window, he felt slightly disturbed. "I suppose I better go give your bosses a good speech now." He pointed to a conference on a higher floor and the man smiled and nodded.

"To be honest, they're all scared of you anyway," The man began. "You probably could go up there and-"

Heihachi never heard the man finish his sentence, the window caught his attention again as a black car slammed into the wall with a horrible groan of metal and brick scraping against each other, every head turned to the wreckage and for a moment there was dead silence as it was all pieced together.

"Whoa," The man exclaimed. "Hey, go get that render and move it back, we'll check to see if the driver is ok!" He called to a man as he inched forward. Another smaller, stockier man moved the JACK rendering from its table and took it off to the back of the warehouse, the first man knocked on the hood and called out to the driver.

"Hey!" He yelled. "You ok in there?" Heihachi walked closer to, ready to pluck the man out of the car if he needed to. It was just as the man reached the driver's side door and Heihachi could clearly see through the window shield that he noticed the movement. The driver moved in such a way that it made Heihachi's blood run cold for a moment, he didn't know how he knew it but, Heihachi threw himself back just as the explosion ripped through the car and the wall.

The flames slashed at the air above him as he hit the ground and the initial sound of metal being blown in all directions was eventually replaced by the sounds of men screaming and confusion. Heihachi threw himself to his feet quickly and looked around, the warehouse was wrecked, the entire wall where the car had been, was blown out and the ceiling was badly damaged as well. Fires were everywhere but, that didn't deter Heihachi from running into the flames to the mess of steel that was the car. A large piece of flaming metal and concrete blocked his path and with little effort he knocked it out of the way, the car was surprisingly not in flames, to his left was the man he had been talking to the entire time, he was dead. Body intact externally but, Heihachi could see his bones had been crushed nearly into dust by the explosion. In the car the driver was dead too, there wasn't any answer to be had here.

Heihachi stroked his chin methodically for a moment; through the crackle of flames and the screams of men he heard something else. Initially it sounded so far away but as he focused it got louder and louder.

Gunfire.

Heihachi stepped out of the flames and trained his eyes in the direction of the shots. In the distance he could see a few men entering the warehouse, this was a raid. For a moment Heihachi stood there and thought, his mind slowed to a pace where he could analyze all his ideas.

It could be a random raid; Japan wasn't impervious to serious crime but, in light of his new relationship with the Yakuza Heihachi couldn't take that assumption too strongly. The other idea was that if this was intentional, what was the goal? Was it that his aggressors knew he was here, or did they know the Zaibatsu's most important and expensive program was being developed here?

Heihachi's blood began to boil, The JACK program was too far behind to suffer a set back like this, Heavy Industries had more mock-ups at their headquarters but, this was real the majority of the theoretic work happened. It was bad enough a couple of people were killed in the blast but, now the entire stability of the warehouse was in question, if it collapsed it would be more trouble that he didn't need.

Previous attempts on his life were a little more subtle, scores of armed men weren't set after him, if one of them were to get caught there was always the possibility they would be made to talk and that was the plan.

Quickly he ran over to the entrance and waited just outside the pathway for the men to come through, mindfully he peeked inside and counted three men, all armed, exploring the surroundings, Heihachi put his back on the wall and waited. He could hear the men speaking Japanese but, they weren't saying anything of any worth, vile comments, casual observations, and the caliber of their guns supported that they weren't part of some small group of criminals. There were men scattered everywhere, groaning in pain, or silent in a comatose state or maybe inertia.

Heihachi's hand balled into a fist, and counted silently in his head, he wanted to run in there and knock the men down but, if he did that he risked getting some of the workers in the crossfire and so he waited. The first man walked through the door without looking back missing Heihachi's existence totally, the second man followed in the same fashion. The men weren't very old; something that always seemed to be true about Heihachi's assailants, most seemed to be in their late twenties some seemed to be teenagers at best. Initially Heihachi felt some guilt about being so rough and young kids but, after some time passed he recognized that these kids had made their choices and they would have to deal with the consequences accordingly.

After he had recovered in the hospital, which took some, Heihachi was enemy number one for the Yakuza. They didn't have overwhelming attacks against him every moment of everyday but, when they did have something planned and executed it did set him back quite a bit. At first Heihachi sought some help from the Japanese government but, they were so caught up in the bureaucratic mess they couldn't be bothered to get between the Yakuza and the Zaibatsu and thus started the rocky relationship with his home government. The Japanese had grown less fond with the Zaibatsu, though they were providing state-of-the-art materials for crime fighting to the government the Japanese had grown less excited about the war on crime. After the news of Heihachi and Yasurgi's encounter the Japanese government all but pulled away from supporting the Zaibatsu, which only meant they were under pressure from the crime organization. In short Heihachi knew the JACK program would be strong enough to combat even large groups like the Yakuza and the Japanese government would come around again.

The Chinese government was worse, Heihachi still had charges pending on him for the death of Yasurgi though there was no proof he was there. Kai Wulong did what he could to provide Heihachi some security but, the corruption in the government had almost stymied him into doing nothing. All was riding on the completion of the JACK program at this point now, either that or some solid evidence against the Yakuza that couldn't be denied. Even without a prosecution the blow to capturing one of them trying to go after Heihachi would be damaging enough. All he needed was the 'big fish'.

Years ago, when he was younger, Jinrei had told him that crime syndicates ran the same way, like schools of fish. No organization sent a group of junior members alone to get a job done, there was always a 'big fish' overseeing them. The small fish usually knew nothing more than to go and shoot but, the big fish had the information he wanted and all that was needed to get that information was some slight suffocation and pressure.

The third man walked in slowly, more cautious than the others, Heihachi eyed him, in his mind he dared the third man to turn around. And as if he heard the thought the man turned around and looked Heihachi in the eye.

The shock of seeing Heihachi convinced the Mishima this was another 'small fish' and with speed and precision Heihachi caught the man's gun between his left arm and twisted it from his grip whilst simultaneously jabbing the man with his right fist to the side of his head. When the punch connected the man stiffened and stood oddly upright as if he had been shocked with a megawatt of voltage.

As the gun hit the ground, the second man turned but, didn't even have the chance to see Heihachi's fist came up into his chin smashing his jaw into pieces. And the first man didn't turn around fully; Heihachi grabbed the thickness of his neck from behind and tossed him into a wall without the slightest hint of effort.

Heihachi followed the body of the man who careened into the wall and fell limp like a doll. Methodically he went through his pockets looking for anything of importance but, as he suspected there wasn't a thing in them. For a moment he knelt over the body feeling perplexed. What could the point of this have been? Three armed men and a car bomb was formidable but, not nearly enough to have take down the entire operation, or enough to have committed some sort of high end theft. There had been more violent and thorough attempts on Heihachi's life so he doubts this was some sort of assassination attempt. So what did that leave?

It was then that he remembered. He felt the muscles in his body flinch violently as his nerves demanded that he move. How could he have forgotten of all things, he was always so concerned with his work and this company he had forgotten he had come here with his kids.

"Damnit" Heihachi spat, he looked at his watch, they hadn't left that long ago, and chances were they were in the video rental store when the explosion went off. Hopefully Yu had them stay there. Like a car, Heihachi mentally through himself into gear and ran out the warehouse.

Outside the sun was high and people had gathered because of the explosion, north of him he could see the video rental store, some people were gathered at it, some people were going towards the store.

'_Why?'_

Heihachi raced up the street with all his might, his eyes darted around it suddenly became clear who was a concerned citizen and who was apart of the plan. Just a few feet ahead of him a disguised enemy spotted him and reached for a gun, Heihachi dashed with a burst of energy he didn't know he had and tossed his fist deep into the man's gut. The ma barely made a whimper and his body collapsed like a house of cards to the wind but, Heihachi didn't stall and continued forward.

Cars in the road screeched to a halt, citizens screamed in panic and ran in fear. To most of them Heihachi was probably a blur, just another person running from the heated metal and incandescent flames. Never mind the fact he was probably one of the riches men in the region.

With a force that mustered in his gut culminated into his shoulder, Heihachi knocked the door of the video store. Several people screeched in fear unaware of what was happening, Heihachi's eyes darted looking for Kazuya, Lee or Yu but, there was no sign of them, in the corner of his eye he saw a door swinging, he didn't hesitate, he tossed himself over a rack of tapes, spilling them and threw himself through the door.

They were there, Yu, Kazuya and Lee and another man with his back to Heihachi, facing the kids. His arm slowly pulled up and the gun was visible for second before Heihachi desperately threw himself into the man. The explosion of the gun made Kazuya scream out loud and Yu hit the ground like a bag of bricks.

The man rebounded from the ground with a twist of his legs that knocked Heihachi over. Trying to get off the floor Heihachi suddenly felt a sting across his chest and arm. The blade was like a flash of light and the blood began to flow through his tattered clothes. The man fell back to the ground and Heihachi tossed over to him and turned the man around. To his shock the man didn't struggle instead his arm shot to his face and his hand to his mouth.

"No!" Heihachi yelled and smacked the man's arm from his face but, it was too late. Within seconds the man was foaming at the mouth and convulsing. Heihachi got to his feet and left the man to sweep his kids up.

Kazuya was crying but, Lee just looked in fear but, kept his composure. Yu was bleeding on the ground, two spots on his back seared with heated lead.

"Are you ok?" Heihachi begged the children; Kazuya's tears streamed down his eyes as he rubbed his thumb and middle finger together, a nervous habit he picked up somewhere.

"What's going on?!" He asked, voice shaking and cracking like wood.

"It's all right," Heihachi pressed the boy to his body. "Are you ok?" Heihachi asked Lee more calmly.

"I'm fine," Lee spoke. "Your arm…" he started. Heihachi looked down at the cut. It was deeper than he thought but, the pain was all but gone.

"It's alright," Heihachi glanced at Yu; there was no way he was going to survive. Instantly he felt the highest form of compunction, he should have never have brought the kids to this, he only intended a meeting and now they had witnessed a murder suicide. Heihachi took a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair, it was thinning in the middle, he could feel his scalp, his fingers dug into it, for a moment there was pure rage and then it was gone. He felt Lee take a hold of his arms and suddenly nothing else mattered.

Following the events Heihachi reconvened with his father and Wang. Wang knew the weight of the situation the best, it was agreed the kids would stay with Jinpachi until there was some better accommodation. Heihachi's personal spaces were no longer a place of safety and Hon-Maru was the best place for safety.

Wang was concerned for Heihachi's safety and even suggested hiring a body guard for the Mishima but Heihachi refused. It was clear that whoever was staging these attacks had some sort of international clout. People feared that the Yakuza or Triads would eventually branch of out of their respective countries but, as of now that wasn't happening. The Yakuza, for the most part, stayed in Japan and the Triads in China. An attack of this magnitude couldn't have possibly been caused by the Yakuza, one because it wasn't their style and two it was in China.

If it were the Triads that begged the question 'why?' Heihachi had killed one of the senior members of the Triads biggest enemies, if anything that would hold a mutual respect for Heihachi and use the distraction to take advantage of the situation. And though they had a strong hold on the Chinese government there was still the chance they'd push their limits and force the corrupt officials to cooperate with the just ones.

So the attack offered more questions than answers, Heihachi had no choice but to go back to work in Japan. Jinrei suggested that his new program was probably the point of interest for his adversaries. Even if that were true the JACK program wasn't even close to being completed and the board was still unhappy with his insistence on keeping the program going. Making matters worse the head of the program, Abel, was being increasingly hard to work with. He didn't show up at required meetings on the process of the program and showed up unannounced at meetings he didn't belong in to make harsh and critical complaints about the budget of the program.

The board respected Heihachi and even admitted fault in the initial disagreement over the opening of Mishima Heavy Industries but, the JACK program was a major point of discontentment for the board, especially because most of trustees didn't personally like Abel. The Japanese were breathing down his neck about what the final outcome of the project was going to be, they even went so far to cast veiled threats at the company to the effect that if the JACKs weren't sold exclusively to the government Heihachi would need to find a new place to house the Mishima Zaibatsu.

None of it mattered, he was using Chinese soil to complete the program anyhow, and there was nothing they could do to stop that. The Chinese were being paid top dollar to house certain portions of Heavy Industries but, either way there was still a ripe tension in the air.

There was the nagging problem that the JACK program would never be completed, even though it had only been a few years since its conception the prospect of completing an ideal working specimen was slim to none. Abel was the best and only bargaining chip the Zaibatsu had against fate and whomever was creating the JACK's from the stolen data was ahead of the Zaibatsu but probably not prospering very much further.

Though Heihachi didn't want to bother with him he knew Abel was the only person who he could hire that stood a chance in completing the project at all. Jinpachi argued that creating a series of robotic super soldiers would only lead the Zaibatsu down a slippery slope of weapons and combat creation but, Heihachi insisted that no country would be able to obtain any use of the JACKs without first meeting and complying with the ethical demands and agreements of the Mishima Zaibatsu. A government contract would send the Zaibatsu over the edge in terms of support and money. The company was preparing to go international with an office in America as well as expanding Heavy Industries to several other countries where the factories could be built expansively and creation wouldn't be deterred by residential complaints.

The competition was fierce, several other manufactures, most of which the Zaibatsu worked with before creating and implementing Heavy Industries, had already revamped their workloads in an effort to shut out any real work for the Zaibatsu but, it was to no real benefit, Heavy Industries worked on projects not only small but also so large that no one other company could accommodate them.

The only competition that existed in the world was a company similar company named: Rochefort Enterprises an oil company located in Monaco. On the side Rochefort Enterprises served as a manufacturer to many countries utilizing its distinct knowledge of oil to create gas efficient vehicles at low cost. In fact the Zaibatsu used some of their state of the art vehicles as means of transportation from one place to another at various Heavy Industries locations.

The future was bright but a lot of it depended on how well the JACK program finished, if it finished at all.

"You cannot expect a reasonable product if I have to work with such amateurish people!" Abel spat with a thick German accent. Tiredly Heihachi Mishima shifted his weight to the table as the board members held their tongues and their frustration.

"Abel you can't just barge into a board meeting and-" Heihachi began.

"The hell I can't," Abel interrupted. "You hired me to do a job and I need the best possible workers and equipment if I'm to complete this job and I refuse to put out an inferior product." Abel's comment sounded like a demand as he raised his voice to the Mishima.

"We all appreciate your enthusiasm to the project but-" Again Heihachi found his words cut short as Abel began to speak again.

"There won't be a project if your simpleton workers cannot complete simple task," Abel snapped. "You may feel comfortable with having inexperienced and undedicated workers representing the Zaibatsu but, there will be no JACK program affiliated with me if it's not the best possible product." Abel's words were sharp and cut through the room. Slowly Heihachi took of his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose, a sigh softly exited from him. He knew he really couldn't say anything to harsh to the man, they needed him but, he was so disrespectful it was a wonder Abel didn't ever seem to consider his words could get him fired.

"What exactly is the problem this time Abel?" Heihachi asked.

"I simply asked the head of Processes and systems to stay for the night to test out the newest version of my artificial intelligence system but, he insisted that he needed to return home because he had worked a seventeen hour shift. So I ran the diagnostics by myself through the night and had his clearance revoked because he clearly doesn't have the determination to get this project finished-" This time Abel was the one who found himself cut off.

"You don't have access to perform that type of revoking." Heihachi commented.

"What difference does that make Heihachi?" Abel spat. "It happened this way, now he's threatening to keep his work files on the processes of the hydraulics if I don't reissue his permissions." Abel explained.

"You have to reissue his permissions" Heihachi said dismissively. Abel face turned wild without moving an inch. His eyes widened and his forehead began to flush red.

"Did you not hear what I just told you?" Abel asked. "We have insubordination running ramped and they are holding up the process of my work!" Abel forced his hands on to the table dramatically. "I'm working on systems and retouching systems every moment of everyday. I don't have time to reissue him his silly low level permissions."

"Yet you had time to come here and complain." Heihachi raised an eyebrow slightly not amused with the give and take.

"I will not tolerate these types of distractions." Abel boasted.

"I agree he shouldn't hold these documents but, you have to learn your place." Heihachi voice hit a low crescendo that seemed to snap through the room like a thunderclap.

"What does that mean!?" Abel scoffed offended

"It means you are to do a job and the Zaibatsu is compensating your work but, don't forget this is MY project Abel you don't call the shots in this company anymore than you would if you were working for the Japanese government." The words were like bullets to Abel's pride being that Heihachi had found Abel working for the Japanese government in the most restricted way, essentially stifling all of his creative efforts. Originally Heihachi's hiring was seen as a gesture of good faith but, it had quickly turned into a nightmare with Abel's ego.

"This is MY project too Heihachi, when these 'JACKs' are completed it will be my name that's attached to their great design and I will be damned if you put something out into the world with my name that isn't of the best quality."

"Then I would suggest you find a way to work with the people who are physically making your product a little better," Heihachi said quickly after Abel not allowing for a moment for the scientist words to linger. "The workers in this Zaibatsu are the finest but, they are still mortal you can't expect to have complete control over every person and every time whilst working them at the highest rate you can conceive. You must give these men and women time to rest and use their minds as best as they can. Let's not forget it's only been three months since the attack and many of them lost friends and fear for their lives. You weren't there to see the wreckage and carnage. Those assassins had a purpose and murdered innocent people." Heihachi spoke quickly and without pause to think of what he was saying, his voice exuded authority much like the way his father spoke. The board members nodded in disagreement while watching Abel for a reaction. For a moment the scientist eased up in expression, taking in Heihachi's word but, almost as if some invisible person whispered in his ear, Abel's face shrunk into a rage.

"Your security forces are the ones who should be thinking about that attack, if they were more attentive the attack would have never happened. None of this was my doing or fault, so don't take this self righteous bullshit tone with me. I want those files and if I don't get them soon I'm going to detach myself from this little show and tell project you've got going Heihachi!" Abel's voice filled the small conference room with so much volume that a small group outside the conference room gathered and listen. Heihachi took a breath but, vowed not to lose his temper.

"You'll get the files Abel, you are entitled to them and I will talk personally to the man who is currently keeping them from you," Heihachi started. "But if you walk into this conference room unannounced again you're going to find yourself on receiving end of a summons and more importantly on your way back to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics." With the utterance of the last five words Abel stood stiff before issuing Heihachi a severe glare then stormed out.

Upon his exit a few of the board members smiled and one clasped his hands together. Heihachi raised both eyebrows and frowned.

"I'm sorry you had to see that," Heihachi wearily apologized.

"Actually," one of the older men started. "It was good to see someone put that man in his place finally." The men all chuckled except Heihachi, who looked out the window, into Japan.

At night, both the typical one and the deep one. The one wear people sill roamed the streets and the one people hid from. When the moon went behind the black cloud and did not offer even a small peek to the Earth. When the stars stop blinking and simply closed to the world, and when the black of dirt matched the celestial curtain that enveloped the world. In that time, while most other slept, save for maybe some night ghast that stalked the forest for poor souls who were lost, Heihachi spent reading. The books of Hon-Maru had doubled in only six months, Heihachi spent most of his time reading, then looking for books and Zaibatsu work. Kazuya and Lee stayed with Jinpachi and Jinrei with Heihachi coming at night to work, play and take care of them. Lee took a liking to Wang, unsurprisingly, as Wang had a lot to tell the boy about his Chinese heritage. Lee was also very quick to understand, Wang joked that the boy must have had some merchants in his family and that Lee reminded him of himself at that age. Wang did research and found out about Lee's biological family, whom were all but wiped out by the Triads. Lee's uncle had gotten involved in the gambling trade and made enemies with Triads when he failed to pay off his debts he put the blame on his oldest sister, Lee's mother, whom, he claimed, stole his money for her wedding. Whether or not the gang believed him was debatable but, they went after Lee's parents. Lee's father managed to pay off a large portion of the debt but, his brother-in-law fled to Morocco, leaving the rest of the debt unpaid. Lee's father was unable to pay the money because of Lee's birth and as compensation the Triads wanted the child to raise. When Lee's father refused, they attempted to kill the both of them but, his parents escaped.

Knowing it wouldn't be long before the Triads caught up to them, the couple planned to flee the country but, first left Lee in China. His father knew the chances of them actually escaping the country was slim and if they caught them with Lee it would all be over, so they left the baby with his aging parents. When the couple boarded the first plane they could out of the country, it was boarded by Chinese officials who took them off. When they were detained they were confronted by the Triads who killed his father. Somehow Lee's mother managed to escape and went straight to her deceased husband's parents. When she was there she explained the entire situation to them and that there was little chance that the Triads hadn't followed her. Understanding their fate had been decided the older couple forged an idea to at least get the child away from the gang. Pooling all their money together the three took the child to a group of bandits that lived on the outskirts of their town and gave them all the money they had so they would take the child.

The bandits initially seemed reluctant but, the money was a large sum. They explained to the bandits why they were selling the child and the bandits understood and agreed to protect the child from the triads and accepted the money.

Three days later Lee's mother and grandparents were found mutilated in a theatre.

Of course Wang didn't explain the specific details of his parent's death to Lee, or how the Triads had hunted and killed any remaining family members but, he did tell Heihachi who only told Lee that his family were victims of gang violence, something the boy already knew.

This gave Heihachi more of an incentive to go after the Triads, if it was them who had orchestrated that attack in China then, he had an excuse anyway but, this was more personal. However all information about the men who had attacked him lead back to absolutely nothing, some minor offenses here and there but, nothing that could tie them to the Triads or any other sort of organized crime. All the information made it seem as if a random group of criminals had grouped together to try to kill him, which didn't make any sense.

When he wasn't focused on his books, kids or company Heihachi watched Jinpachi. Two years ago ever day that went by was a solemn event. Now every day that went by garnered new hope. Though it was clear the influence of 'Devil' was still a part of him but, he didn't seem to have any lapses in judgment. Jinpachi described it as if the demon inside of him had given up, or was weakened by something. Heihachi took solace in that but, was also aware that Kazuya may have been harboring the curse as well. There wasn't a way for Heihachi to look and tell if the boy had it also, he was reading on that subject now but, he knew Jinpachi could and Jinpachi insisted that he did not sense the curse within him.

Still Heihachi wasn't sure; there was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind that didn't fully trust his father anymore. The more books he read the more he was taken by surprise at how devious forces, like the one inside Jinpachi, were. There were only a few readings that seemed to reference Heihachi's exact anomaly and those readings were cryptic in nature. All he knew directly about the curse was that it was a demon and several books claimed it was the origin of demonic forced.

Even it if were true that didn't tell Heihachi anything about how to stop it or what its purpose was. Other books held remedies for demonic aggressors. A specific placement of stones, wood from trees said to combat demons and a whole host of other things. Most of the remedies turned out to be of no help, Heihachi would place them around Hon-Maru and watch Jinpachi and nothing would ever happen when he crossed its path. Heihachi chronicled these in a journal he had stored in his shack, he also told Jinrei about all of it. It started out with a confession of guilt Heihachi had. He told Wang he felt wrong about hiding religious artifacts and demonic slayers around Hon-Maru and watching to see if Jinpachi was exorcised or not. Jinrei was more than understanding and even admitted to doing some of the same things around Hon-Maru as well, with equal amounts of luck. Together Heihachi and Jinrei tackled readings and discussed their discoveries with one another but, nothing was of great revelation, though Heihachi admitted to himself that having Wang on board was comforting.

One morning Heihachi woke up in a book, his eyes were heavy and uncomfortable and his neck was stiff from being in that position for however many hours he was in it. There were no windows in the shack as to not distract him so he didn't know whether it was day or night. He could hear the forest; it wasn't a series of sounds but, rather one sound. A slight rustle and blowing all at once, the creek in the distance whirred and Heihachi lifted his head. Briefly he took a look at the interior of the shack. It was greatly disorganized, books were strewn everywhere, but that mess made sense to him. Heihachi rubbed the back of his neck and sighed aloud. His back felt stiffer than his neck, sleeping in a chair was something he should have been used to by now but, still standing up was a slightly painful process.

When he was fully standing he felt his eyes began to refocus. His arms cracked loudly as did other parts of his body, he yawned quietly and walked outside. The glare of the sun stung his eyes briefly and he shielded them with his hands.

It was day, midday at that. The sun was peeking at high noon and the heat was pushing down against his skin. It was still rather quiet, usually the kids were playing or Jinpachi was cooking but, today there was nothing.

There was no wave of fear that came over him, an internal feeling told him that they were safe but, the question was where were they?

Heihachi stepped into the grass and the being of nature enveloped his senses, on hotter days the smell was so potent that it locked everything else out. It was then that Heihachi realized he was hungry, he frowned and looked at the fire pit, and it was burned out. Jinpachi had cooked earlier and he had missed it. Heihachi hadn't fished seriously in years; he wasn't sure how long it would take him to catch something worthy of his appetite. His frowned squirmed to the other side of his mouth, if only there was something to eat nearby.

"Oh ho ho ho," A voice sprung up behind him. "Finally awake?" Jinrei stood there under the afternoon sun holding a bag out to Heihachi. Heihachi recognized it was from a restaurant in the city; Heihachi took the bag and smiled.

"Jinrei, it's as if you read my mind." Heihachi spoke opening the bag. "I'm not sure when the last time I ate was." Heihachi bowed at the man.

"Well when Jinrei cooked this morning I knew between his massive hide and the two boys there wouldn't be much left for you." Jinrei explained, Heihachi bit into his food.

"Speaking of which do you know where they are?" Heihachi asked, Jinrei nodded and moved into the shade.

"I convinced him to take them into the city to see a show or something." Jinrei explained, Heihachi came slowly into the shade behind Jinrei.

"Oh, I could have done that. I don't have much planned for today." Heihachi explained. Jinrei sat on a log and tapped the spot next to him for Heihachi to sit.

"Yes but, I need you." Jinrei began. Heihachi sat next to him and looked at him puzzled.

"What can I help you with?" As Heihachi finished the sentence Jinrei unveiled a book before him. Heihachi's mouth slacked as he looked at the leather binding and the carefully sewn title on it. His eyes met Jinrei's who stared directly at him.

"How did you…?" Heihachi began.

"It took some travelling, a little lying and some…" He rubbed his knuckles in mock pain. "Aggressive persuasion." Jinrei explained.

"Is this the original?" Heihachi asked, Jinrei shrugged.

"Could be but, it's bigger than the other volumes combined." Heihachi touched the sewn words, they read: _Death, Life and the Five Towers_. The book was one referenced in many of his other books, many of the ideologies and facts were cited to be from this book. The word 'Devil' only came up in one of his readings and that reading specifically referenced _The Five Towers_ as its source for most of its assumptions. However in Heihachi's search for the book he had only come up across duplicates that were badly translated and lead him to no conclusions.

"Have you read any of it?" Heihachi asked, Jinrei shook his head.

"I only just managed to get back into the country and keeping it from customs was a hard enough of a problem, plus you have all this other background information," He gestured at Heihachi's shack. "It'll do better for you." Heihachi looked in awe at the book, the information he could get would be priceless but, he was already reading six books. This one would need deep translation, it would take him months if not a year to complete the entire thing and that was assuming he could translate it.

"I can't tell you what this means," Heihachi began. "This could save my father."

"Hopefully," Jinrei nodded; quickly like a snake striking he took Heihachi's arm. "But until then He cannot know about you having this book." He paused and released Heihachi and looked away. "That thing is still inside of him and if it knew you had this book it could cause it to react; you'll have to keep this a secret." Jinrei explained.

"Of course" Heihachi agreed, silently he thought of Kazuya, to be extra safe he'd have to keep the boy from knowing about it too. Wang sighed loudly and scratched his leg before standing up again.

"I'm worried," Jinrei admitted, he pulled is gaze to the sun, around the area where the small creek flowed.

"About?" Heihachi asked, realizing that Wang's seriousness was beginning to worry him.

"About your father, I know he looks like he's getting better but," Jinrei trailed off.

"Has he said anything to you?" Heihachi asked, Wang shook his head but didn't say anything.

"I suppose it's just an old man being silly" Jinrei smiled and turned away from Heihachi. "Well, I think I'm going to head into the city." Jinrei said happily, going along with his happiness Heihachi laughed.

"What's in the city for an old Chinese man?" Heihachi asked, Jinrei began walking away out of Hon-Maru.

"Oh the same things as always." Jinrei called to Heihachi. "Food and good looking women." The old man eventually faded into the distance and the sun above him faded, in his heart Heihachi pondered but, in his mind he smiled.

That night was cool; the remnants of the brisk winter air flowed down onto Hon-Maru like a silk sheet onto a bed and lay on top of it. The freshness stayed in the air and billowed softly to and fro, rustling the leaves and parting dirt on the ground ever so slightly. In the distance a storm growled, lighting could be seen miles away, storm cloud quickly raced overhead but paid no mind to the people below them and the faint smell of rain wafted through the trees. It felt as if in any moment the sky would open and drown out the Earth, and the vibrant electricity of nature's tension hung there too, like a constant reminder of what could be.

But the sky didn't open and the only rain that came down was across the way. The chimes glistened in the wind slightly and the night blanketed the sky in a hug that was both tight and caressing.

In his study Heihachi stared at a book, not reading just simply gazing without thought at the page. After Jinrei left he went back to reading, his responsibilities at the Zaibatsu could wait another day. Four hours after Jinrei departed Jinpachi returned with the kids and Heihachi sat and ate with them. Jinpachi told his son how Lee managed to come in second in an arm wrestling contest in a fair, after congratulating the boy he asked if Kazuya had entered and how he fared, only to learn that Kazuya had entered but failed to place. Embarrassed the boy rubbed his thumb and middle finger together.

"I'm not very strong." Kazuya pouted, Heihachi raised his eye brows and nodded silently but, Jinpachi interjected.

"Of course you are, you are a Mishima, and all Mishima are strong look at me!" Jinpachi flexed a muscle on his arm and encouraged Kazuya to do it too, sheepishly the little boy followed as did Lee.

"See?" Jinpachi began. "One day you will the most powerful of all…" Jinpachi's voice trailed off for a moment and Heihachi became alert and looked directly at him.

Something in the way he expressed himself was odd, the tone of his voice, as almost telling Kazuya a secret. Heihachi's mind began to formulate all the possible meanings but, before he could even bring himself to think to say anything Lee interjected.

"Do you think I'll grow up be strong too?" Lee asked, Jinpachi looked him over skeptically but, with a wry smirk.

"Of course!" The elder exclaimed. "You are being raised by Mishima, you will be very powerful." They shared a laugh and finished and not before long Heihachi was putting the boys to bed.

After the two boys were settled in Heihachi was approached by Jinpachi but, refused a night with him to do more reading. Jinpachi however wasn't so easily pushed aside.

"You read so much, I barely talk to you." Jinpachi explained.

"I know, between Zaibatsu work and these readings I don't have time for much else." Heihachi sighed as he stretched and then sat in front of the fire.

"I'm afraid you may be burning the candle at both ends," Jinpachi aired his concerns. "Maybe you should try to supplement your readings." Jinpachi suggested.

"What do you mean?" Heihachi yawned, he knew the more he talked to Jinpachi the less chance he was going to actually read tonight.

"I know a lot of the books you have in there need to be translated," Jinpachi explained. "Perhaps you could have someone translate them for you and then simply do the readings." Jinpachi explained. Heihachi shook his head.

"The information is too important for me not to translate on my own." Heihachi explained, Jinpachi nodded and waved off Heihachi's concern.

"Well of course, you'd need someone who you could trust to translate those books." Jinpachi explained.

"Like who?" Heihachi asked, he felt his mind shutting down slowly.

"Maybe me?" No sooner than the words came out of Jinpachi's mouth, Heihachi's mind restarted and he stood up.

"No," He answered simply, Jinpachi stood as well, he came close his son.

"Heihachi," Jinpachi called. "I'm just worried about you." The elder Mishima put his massive hand on Heihachi's shoulder and applied a slight caring pressure.

"I know but," Heihachi sighed. "It just isn't a good idea father. I'll finish the readings in time, I promise." Heihachi put his hand on Jinpachi's hand and smiled.

"I just wish I could help you, son." Jinpachi sighed loudly, there was a hint of frustration in it but, Heihachi ignored it and began to walk away.

"In the morning we should go somewhere together," Heihachi said quietly to his father. "It's been a while since we've gone out together." The old patriarch laughed.

"That sounds like a great idea." Jinpachi watched, as his son walked into his book shack, and he watched the door when it closed long after his son had gone in.

Inside Heihachi stood around for a moment before going to a book shelf and sifting through a few books, a moment later he stopped. He looked at the desk and sat at it. Softly and slowly he reached under the desk and felt around, not long after he felt the leather binding of the book and the tape he used to put it there. With a snatch he ripped the tape and the book fell into his hand, and he put it on the desk.

The leather on the book glistened in the small light, his eyes drooped slightly and he rubbed them with the back of his hand. He opened the book and stared at the first page, the words danced in his mind like leaves falling from trees in the wind. The slight touch of the old paper felt feeble and derelict, yet it was soft to his senses and before he knew it he had fallen asleep.

The slightest sound of some sort of knocking awoke him. It was faint but, for some reason the little thud woke him out of his dream. Groggy and slightly confused Heihachi rose his head up and yawned silently. How long had he been asleep? He couldn't tell if it was five minutes from when he sat down or five days but, judging from his relaxed state he had been rest for a while. His muscles fought against him, his mind screamed for him to lie back down but, instead he stood up and stretched.

He knew he had to figure a better way to get all of his work done. Being this exhausted wasn't going to benefit any of his obligations but, there never seemed to be a time for rest in his schedule, everything was dire. The last time he had gotten any real form of sleep was years ago since then he had been working diligently to make the Mishima Zaibatsu more powerful and more successful. He knew he wanted to pass it on but, he couldn't tell Jinpachi that, he had worked as the head of the company for some time but, with everything else going on Heihachi needed time to completely focus and with the Zaibatsu under his control he simply couldn't do it. The question was: who was he going to hand it over to? There was the notion that it had to be owned by a Mishima but, the only one left was Jinpachi and Kazuya was too young, even still the boy showed no natural leadership qualities. Heihachi surmised that if he was going to wait until Kazuya was older to pass it to him he had a better chance of Lee being more successful at the job. Lee showed more common sense and already had developed somewhat of a thick skin, not to mention that he was smart and humble. Already Lee was showing the qualities necessary to take over the Zaibatsu so it made since that when he was old enough Heihachi would give it to him.

That still didn't answer the question of what he was going to do until then, the Zaibatsu was successful but, at any given moment it was staring down the barrel of failure. Between the attacks on the company, the slow development of the JACK program and finding a proper use for Heavy Industries, Heihachi was combating multiple game changing problems multiple times a day. He was rich though, whatever he had made in his salary working under Jinpachi had him well covered but, added to that was his earnings as the head of the Zaibatsu and co-owner of all products made in Heavy Industries. Heihachi Mishima was a very rich man; he toyed with the idea that if he left everything behind today and took only the money he would be not only financially safe for the rest of his life but, affluent for the rest of his and his sons' lives. Still there was something about running the company that money didn't begin to explain so he never really allowed that idea to come seriously into consideration.

Stiffly the Mishima walked to the door of his study and opened slightly to see the time of day it was. The dark purple still blanketed the sky and the cool air informed Heihachi that it was only early the next morning. He sighed aloud and closed the door before turning back to the study vowing to read some of the book this time. Lazily his eyes looked over the study, taking their time to look at the shelves of books; one by one they passed until finally his eyes fell on his desk.

A moment of instinctual puzzlement came over Heihachi, it could have been confused with his being groggy but, he knew that this feeling wasn't of that nature. The sight of his desk was confusing him, it appeared in order. The brownish-yellow wood sat there quietly, a small lamp, some loose papers, a picture of Kazume and a black pen lay on top. So what was so strange to his eyes? The order? Had he moved the things in his sleep so the design of the ornaments was different? No. Perhaps he had never taken the time before to look at the actual make up of his desk and looking at it now was the first time he was processing it? No. Then what was it? Everything appeared to be in order nothing was missing…

That was it, something was missing, and it was there when he fell asleep but, it wasn't there now. With a burst of energy he hadn't been able to summon before Heihachi leapt to the desk, his hands desperately smacked the underbelly of the desk and felt around ravenously but, found nothing. In his mind the leather binding slightly glistened but, in his sight it was not there.

He stood straight up and probed the room with his eyes, quickly this time. His mind raced identifying all the books that came into view within seconds; none looked like the book he was looking for. The floor, the walls, the ceiling, nothing, nothing, nothing, the sound of his breathing getting louder began to fill the study but, another sound whispered in the distance.

The sound of trees moving in the night was not uncommon but, when one was used to hearing them it was clear when the rustling was from the natural meanderings of the wind and when it was not. Like a lion onto prey Heihachi burst out of the door of the study and back tracked behind it. Some branches lay there, broken a tell-tale sign that someone had been stalking there. Furious with anger Heihachi blazed off onto the trail in a sprint in an attempt to find the culprit.

The forest was nearly pitch black in the early morning save the light from the moon and a few torches that lit the false path. In the cool blowing of the wind that smelled of nature and the impending morning Heihachi darted forward ignoring the tree branches that slapped him in the face like reality had just done with the disappearance of the book. Part of him yelled furiously at himself, he had just gotten the book, how could he be so careless? There were robbers that frequented the woods yes but, there was nothing of any use or value in Hon-Maru but, a book like that _looked_ expensive and old and he had left it out! So focused on the present the obvious questions escaped Heihachi, instead he cursed himself for losing the book, curse the person who stole it and thought vigorously of the path ahead. He knew where they were and he knew they were coming to the clearing soon. Hon-Maru sat nearly directly on top of a large ravine, the sheer severity of the height was startling to look at from either the top or the bottom. The canyon separated Hon-Maru from the other providences and the canyon was bare save a few drops of water that trickled in from ocean. It was a dead end, in order to skip the canyon one had to take a hike around it and this person was had ran right towards it. Heihachi elated slightly in the fact that he was going to catch whoever had taken the book in only a matter of seconds but, just as he realized that a question came into his mind: How could someone have gotten into the study? There a small bell on the front door that served to alert him whenever someone entered and no windows. The only other, possible, way in was a small hole in the dirt floor that a raccoon or something had dug up but, it was so small no man could fit into it.

It was just then that Heihachi burst out of trees. The full moon looked down upon him with a slight frown that covered half his face in obscurity. In the distance the ocean heaved one direction before sighing into the next. The dirt under his feet was hard rock, cold with the night and darkness. From here one could see so much of Japan in the background, its trees, mountains even some of the cityscapes were visible but, none of that matter because the person he was chasing was standing before him.

Heihachi looked him up and down as if looking at something ghastly or terribly frightening. But he didn't jump, or attack or leap forward in anger, instead the thief just stood there idle looking back Heihachi like a mirror image, as if it were looking at something ghastly in the moonlight. Their actions paralleled, save the thief was rubbing his thumb and middle finger together slowly.

Heihachi felt his heart stop; all in one moment he felt the most dead he had ever felt and the most alive. He felt his chest collapse and explode and his eyes welled with tears as he tried to hold them back from escaping.

"Why?" He asked in a broken croak, his voice was an alien in the darkness, he spoke loudly too so the wind carried the words to the moon. There was no answer he just stood there, silent.

Heihachi took a step forward but, the thief took a step back, Heihachi shook his head and held his hand out.

"Give me the book Kazuya." Heihachi demanded but, the book finally moved and shook his head adamantly.

"I can't do that," he spoke with his little voice but, he sounded like a grown man to Heihachi. "I have to take this book and-"

"And what?!" Heihachi screamed. "Destroy it; make sure I don't finish reading it?" Heihachi's voice began to return the tears, slowly receded. "I understand but, I am your father and I need that book to help you!" Kazuya quickly glanced at the canyon and then back at Heihachi.

"Destroy it…" Kazuya repeated methodically, he thought with his eyes. "Yes."

"No," Heihachi began to correct. "That's not what you were going to do was it?" Heihachi asked. The boy rubbed his thumb and middle finger more quickly and tears began to stream down his face but, he remained silent.

"Answer me!" The bark tore into the night, a few birds leapt from their trees startled at Heihachi's voice. The boy looked away.

"I have to," He spoke softly but, Heihachi heard every word. "Give it to Jinpachi."

All in one moment Heihachi felt the sensation of vertigo, as he looked down at his son he felt the sky twisting above him like the start of a mad tempest. His eyes begged to focus and his body stiffened as he regained control.

"This whole time…" Heihachi commented. "You've been his extension, watching me, reporting me to him haven't you?" Heihachi asked.

"I have to-"

"But you don't know why…" The revelation was clear. "What is it, you have dreams? Have a feeling, hear a voice?" The boy's eyes perked at his last suggestion.

"This book has to get away from us!" The boy barked back, his voice weak and small.

The slightest sensation filled Heihachi's body.

"You can fight it Kazuya, you don't have to listen!" The boy seemed to struggle for the most minute of moments and then it was clear. He looked back at the canyon and winded his arm back for the toss and with all his little might the boy swung his arm and book towards the canyon but, it was for naught.

With expert precision and speed Heihachi grabbed the boys arm and prevented the throw, roughly he snatched the book from his hands. The boy whined loudly as Heihachi lifted him by the arm so they were faced to face. Violently the boy wriggled and resisted against Heihachi with his eyes closed but, with no effort Heihachi held him there.

"Look at me boy!" Heihachi demanded. "Look at me!" He bellowed. The wriggling stopped, the moaning, the fussing, the sharp jerks all stilled. Heihachi held the boy to his face and his eyes opened.

Kazuya looked directly at his father and in his look was the same look Jinpachi had that night. Heihachi felt ill, vomit smashed in his stomach up his throat but, held before ejecting itself. For a moment Heihachi just held him there.

"How can you be my son?" Heihachi asked almost silently, looking at the ground. "You're not _my_ son." He continued. "You ask of me something I can't give you Kazuya, I can't protect you and stop it at the same time. I need you to be strong." Heihachi spoke to the boy. "I need to know it's not too late, that somewhere in there my son still exists." Heihachi raised his head and looked the boy in the eyes. "You will never forgive me, I won't ask you to but, this is the only way I can think of." Heihachi took one step forward, the cold of the rocks underneath him felt hot like flames. "If you are really my son, you will climb back up." Heihachi's voiced cracked again. "If you are my son, and strong like every Mishima before you, you will climb back up this cliff find me and exact revenge on me. _Then_ I will know it was you and not it that comes before me. It won't seek me out; it'll plot, send others but, not endanger itself. If you are my son you will climb up this cliff and punish me."

"Wait, father don't, don't do this please, I'm sorry, I didn't want to take the book!" The boy's words came quick like darts. "It was a voice it told me to, it told me to keep it from you." He cried

And cried

And cried

And cried.

And there was nothing he could do but, ignore the cries, ignore the begging, he knew what he was doing _had _to be done, or else he would suffer later for it but, what of his suffering now.

"Daddy please!" Heihachi looked at his son, tears in both their eyes.

"Remember, you will always be Mishima Kazuya." And with a flick of his wrist he tossed the boy over the cliff.

On the way back to Hon-Maru, with the book he had came for but, no longer cared about in his hands, he heard the voice of his son crying out for him. He heard the echo of his screaming as he fell into the abyss and to his ultimate doom. Heihachi felt mindless, bodiless and soulless. His blood was cold; his eyes were worn and beaten from the sights he had put himself through. The moon in the sky frowned on him, so half his face was in obscurity but, when he reached Hon-Maru the torches were all lit. From afar he could see them dancing and when he stepped out of the forest onto the compound his eyes begged for mercy, to not see anything, to go blind, he did not wish to see the blood boiling, or the shaking of the fist or the tears in his eyes but, he did. The hatred and anger was like an ocean wave beating against his chest and Heihachi knew he wasn't through with his terrors for this night. He knew he wasn't done with have made regrets this night, he knew he would not be able to mourn just one death this night.

Because before him stood Jinpachi.


	7. Interlude II

From the back of the crowd he couldn't really hear anything that was going on but, that was ok, this was all protocol. A pep talk before the storm, the details of their assignment would trickle down on the long trip. This was neither the first mission for the young Manji and a confidence, that could be readily mistaken for arrogance, assured him it wouldn't be his last. He was, slightly, impatient, events like these didn't happen too often. All the Manji were riled up and ready for a fight, it was a dangerous time for sure but, as long as their leader kept his head everything would be fine. In the crowd he could she _was_ there after all, she wasn't very obvious but, being the only woman she did stand out a bit. She was very serious, staring directly at the Yoshimitsu as if she was catching him in a terrible lie of some sort. Whatever he was saying it wasn't keeping her attention, she flipped her hair and looked away with a sigh, there was no about it, she was tough but, she had to loosen up.

From where he was he tip-toed to raise above, or in most cases to the same level as the other men and attempted to wave to catch her attention. For a couple of seconds he did this and distracted the other people around him but, she didn't turn around in his direction. Disappointed he frowned and shrunk to his normal height. The men around him swayed with interest at the Yoshimitsu words but, he lazily looked around looking for a path out of the crowd.

Packed together without a way out, the young man frowned and stayed in place listening to the Yoshimitsu's word.

"For generations the Manji have fought for the preservation of sanctity and virtuosity of the human race. We've done it in secrecy, choosing to protect without being hailed as heroes but, now the villainous and poisonous slime that plague man's society has come to our land and directly attacked us!" The Yoshimitsu voice carried throughout the make-shift amphitheatre and the Manji responded loudly. "They've come into our homes and they have stolen a child of the Manji! _My_ child!" The Manji's cried out loudly at the words of the Yoshimitsu.

It was true, the Yohimitsu son, a prominent student of the Manji arts, was kidnapped from the Manji village over a week ago. How it had happen was still unclear but, the vulnerability of the Manji clan was without a doubt was crystal clear. For years the clan knew they had enemies but, it was only just now that their enemies took the fight to the Manji. The brazen nature of the attack left the Manji fearful of their place in society, for so long they had been untouched and know over night they had suffered a devastating blow. The weariness of the Manji was so intense, one could taste it in the air, the feeling of war was on everyone's mind. Vengefulness was a forbidden feeling in the Manji clan and some worried this rescue mission was a disguise for the Yoshimitsu to get his revenge against the kidnappers. Fear of corruption in the leadership of the Manji sent a wave of uncertainty and fear through the entire populace.

"Some of you worry that I may be driven by hate or rage but, I assure you my resolve is stronger than ever! These infantile miscreants have committed one of the most heinous of crimes, a crime against an innocent child! This cannot be allowed to be unchecked, this cannot be left without rectification! The purification of this world may be a task we cannot achieve all our own but, we can do what we can to eliminate waste that threatens our children and our existence!" The Manji cheered but, the young man didn't join in, the words were strong but, hollow. This mission was going to be a large full scale battle against a crime syndicate, no matter how the story was presented, this was going to be the largest attack run in Manji history. All for one child. It was hard to imagine that the Yoshimitsu would apply the same pressure if the child wasn't his own but, doubts like that had no place in battle. When this was all over, the circumstances would resolve themselves, whether it was going to be a positive experience or other was yet to be known.

The speech was over and the Manji began to disperse, back to the mundane task they had to achieve for the day to keep their society working. The young man didn't move as the other Manji walked around him, he casually scratched the back of his neck as everyone moved past him. The sun in the sky was beginning to set, not so far as being in mid-setting but, when the sun begins to dwindle in its shine and the sky began to shift colors. The trees rustled lightly in the wind and the birds settled into their nest. As the crowd broke apart the young man saw his female friend walking in his general direction, excitement filled his mind and he began to intercept her.

Not much to his surprise she has already seen him and before he could issue a greeting she started speaking.

"What did you think?" She asked to him as they began walking together.

"It was quite the arousing verbal communication," the young man commented. "Though the words will mean nil if this plan of attack gets tainted in any fashion." He added on.

"Tell me about it," She spoke. "All it'll take is the wrong move at the wrong time, and this'll go down as the biggest flaw in our history"

"Debauchery is easily achieved through haste." The young man raised his finger to the sky in an expression that silently said 'aha!'. The young woman briefly rolled her eyes at his sentiment and frowned.

"I'm not excited about this mission in the least bit." The young woman ran her fingers through her reddish brown hair and sighed.

"At the very worst it'll test our proficiency in combat, it's been quite some time since we've had real marks." the young man reminded, he laughed briefly.

"Yeah, we could make it a contest but, I'd be afraid that one of us wouldn't come back." She stepped quickly up some stairs.

"Aha!" the young man exclaimed. "You should have more faith in your prowess in battle." The young man smiled but, the young woman shook her head.

"I was referring to you." She spoke confidently.

"Nonsense!" the young man barked playfully. "I haven't been in better form!"

"Is that so?" She remarked. "Is that why Feng was able to pin you to the floor the other day?" she asked. The young man laughed and bowed in a doorway, allowing the young woman to go first.

Feng has the aptitude to defeat me in a round of sparring from time to time." The young man admitted.

"That might be true," the young woman further admitted. "but he's never won against me." She gloated, the young man laughed again.

"But you are a woman, perhaps he feels uncomfortable pinning you to a mat." The young man explained.

"I'm not a woman of beauty," she spoke. "and I've grown up with Feng, by now he should be used to sparring with me, and losing." She went on.

"Feng is strong but, you _are_ undefeated," the young man explained. "You've never considered this may have something to do with your innate gender?" The young man asked.

"If the sparring men are that foolish then I deserve my undefeated title." She explained.

"I concur but, we haven't sparred together in quite some time." The young man pointed out.

"That's because no one can ever find you. You're always in the woods, meditating or becoming closer to nature." She explained. "Not that that would change my status any."

"Perhaps but, my meditation keeps my mind lucid." The young man explained. "I train in the forest too." He added.

"How?" the young woman asked surprised. "I mean what do you do?"

"Stalk bears mostly." The young man admitted. "they're quite clever," he admitted. "my first few attempts ended in embarrassing failures but, over time it's become easier to follow them."

"Helps you build stealth" she emphasized the last syllables of the words.

"Quite," he confirmed. "and when that fails it test my agility." The young woman laughed and sat on a small bench front of a wooden table.

"I haven't eaten today, I'm very hungry."

"Greed is a sin." The young man reminded.

"And starvation is painful." She added.

"Touché," he nodded, an older man came in and placed a plate of fish before them. "I caught today's batch, I hope you find it acceptable." The young man explained.

"When did you get time to fish today?" she asked, the young man shrugged.

"I did it at dawn when everyone was still sleeping, the fish were excited."

"Happy to see their natural friend?" She commented as she began to cut into a fish.

"Oh, how you tease me so," he scratched his head, embarrassed. "But you'll be surprised how much more the natural world respects you when you spend time with it." She chewed a piece of her fish and swallowed.

"I'm spending time with it right now." She joked, the young man chuckled.

"I suppose you are," he explained. "Well tonight we relax, tomorrow will prove to be most interesting."

Early the next morning the battalions were formed,the syndicate was in Hiroshima, a dangerous place to be at the time. With World Two reaching its end and the Japanese being on the wrong end of the events in Pearl Harbor it was strongly believed the American government was going to retaliate against the Japanese in Hiroshima. Because of that legitimate businesses fled the city and the criminals took their chances in the city few, still believed an attack would come from the allies to Japan, Mishima Zaibatsu played a pivotal role in keeping the allies at bay, denouncing the Japanese government's actions against the Americans.

The Japanese pretty much gave up on regulating the city, fearing a backlash from the criminals, a problem they didn't need whilst fighting the biggest war in their modern history. It was the Manji who went into Hiroshima to clean out the city of criminality, breaking up drug rings and money transactions. One of those transactions lead to the acquiring a large sum of cash which the Manji brought back to their neighboring town, apparently the money was tracked and that lead the criminals to the Manji village and some way or another they managed to kidnap the Yoshimitsu's son.

Since then there had been some brief conversation between the Manji and the criminals. Essentially they wanted their money back but, the elders decided it wasn't smart to give back the money after dispersing in the town, plus it didn't seem likely that the criminals were going to keep their end of the deal. The next plan was to reacquire the boy by kidnapping him from the criminals but, that didn't work well, it only angered the criminals and bruised the Manji's ego. Now a little over a week later a full scale attack was planned on the Fukijima office building in midtown Hiroshima to get the boy back. Not only would this attack by impossible to keep hidden but, it would bring the Manji's under scrutiny both by the public and themselves. An attack of this sort was going to put the morality on the line. The Manji were a robin hood like gang, they stole from the rich and immoral and gave to the poor and innocent. Throwing themselves in the middle of a kidnapping that was going to result in a massive assault didn't follow the mold of their innate state of being.

It was the Yoshimitsu who made these decisions and it was a Manji who was kidnapped, so the premise of the assault seemed justified, yet somewhere in there it didn't feel right to the individual Manji.

The young man's battalion was with the Yoshimitsu, a distinct honor for anyone in the battling force. However this wasn't the first time they had fought side by side, the Yoshimitsu was his friend and had been for some time. Though it wasn't as strong as being an apprentice the young man followed in the steps of the Yoshimitsu. For years the Yoshimitsu taught the young man how to fight and the way of the Manji. As he got older and the responsibilities of the Yoshimitsu had him further from the tribe, they grew gradually apart but, never so much so that they ever became like strangers. They were good friends who respected on another and the young man was considered to be something akin to an uncle to the kidnapped son.

The cheap trucks that the Manji travelled in were creaky and always allowed for a bumpy ride. They traveled through the narrow path through the Manji forest to the nearest town. The neighboring town was Tetsujin, a poor little village that shared a river with the Manji clan. Mostly the Manji didn't associate with the village but, every now and then they would bring money or freshly caught fish to the poor people to keep them sustained. As a form of appreciation the people of Tetsujin denied the Manji existence and did all they could to keep the Manji village hidden.

The young man's truck drove into a small ditch and lurched back onto the road with a hard displacement. Cautiously he grabbed onto the door as the truck righted itself.

"To bumpy of a ride for you?" the Yoshimitsu laughed and ruffled the young man's hair with his hand.

"These abject vehicles will run us into failure before we have a chance to meet with any real villains." The young man fussed. The Yoshimitsu knocked on the truck with a fist, producing a hollow sound that echoed.

"I suppose it would be in order to get these trucks fixed…" Another small ditched cause a larger commotion, both men forcefully held on for support. "or get new ones."

"Anything to aid our cause is a worthy expense." The young man groaned, the Yoshimitsu gave him a look of incredulity and frowned.

"I sense that applies to both the truck and some other thing I haven't yet discovered." The Yoshimitsu surmised.

"A good friend of mine wasn't allowed to join us on our mission today." The young man explained.

"Feng is on this assignment, he declared his injuries to be minor." The leader explained.

"I did not mean Feng." The young man sullenly stated.

"Ah you mean your female friend," the Yoshimitsu nodded. "This mission is much too dangerous for her not to mention it's against Manji law." He added.

"She fights better than most other men in these battalions." The young man exclaimed.

"I wouldn't know," the leader admitted. "I do know she's a woman and they aren't allowed on the task force."

"A decree that seems misplaced." The young man spoke softly.

"If we let our women fight they could get killed," The Manji leader explained. "They are precious, where we are clumsy in holding a society as men, they are intricate and careful."

"She is only one woman." The, young man reminded.

"But, her precedent may inspire others, they serves us better as taking care of the village, not dying in battle. They are life bearers." He nodded sternly and the young man didn't make any more protest.

When the trucks were away from the village of Tetsujin and on the main road into the city the Manji leader took out a walkie talkie and talked into it. When he was done each battalion leader reported in, eight in total, which meant forty men in total. It was the second largest band of Manji on a task force in history, the only larger was in the Manji independence when they split from feudal Japan. The road to Hiroshima was ominous, one large road stretched in a long straightway into the city. Outside it rained lightly, the sky was grey from an early day of quiet storm. In the distance they city sprawled upward, the glass and concrete slowly grew into a large behemoth, silently watching them as they came into the city limits.

"The building is in the center of town, you will know it when you see it. It is part of a pair of buildings built next to each other. Half of us will enter the building on the left, the others will enter the right. Those going into the right are to serve as support and back-up. Gau is in the other building and he is the primary focus, we reacquire the boy and then leave." The Yoshimitsu talked into the walkie talkie. The other leaders acknowledged the plan and the Yoshimitsu looked to the young man.

"Are you nervous?" he asked him, the you man shrugged lightly.

"I suppose, the heat of battle is always exciting."

"I'm nervous…" the Yoshimitsu said blankly. "scared too."

"I'm sure Gau is fine," the young man spoke, the Yoshimitsu nodded and fell into silence.

The buildings were like twins, close together at the bases but spreading out further as they reached to the sky. The design of the buildings made them look like the lette 'V' when viewed. From a block away the Yoshimitsu stared at the buildings but, said nothing for a long moment. The rain pattered on the top of the truck.

"Smoke team, go ahead." He spoke into the communicators. Within moments four men walked past the cars towards the buildings. Two of them went into one and two into the other. The Yoshimitsu looked at the young man and said:

"Here we go."

Inside the left building Feng walked with his Manji comrade disguised as delivery men, quietly they approached the front desk with several boxes on a dolly. Feng smiled and put his hand on the desk, looking the receptionist in the eyes.

"Hello there," he spoke kindly. "I have a package here for a Mr. Takinawa." He explained. The woman frowned slightly and took the invoice from Feng and looked at it.

"We weren't expecting any packages today," She said slightly confused. "Do you know who it's from?" she asked. Feng took one of the boxes and looked at it.

"From an Exodus Industries." He relayed; the woman nodded and took her phone to her ear. She pressed a few buttons and waited before speaking.

"Yes, there's a series of packages for Mr. Takinawa from an Exodus Industries…" She waited, nodded and grunted her response. "Alright, thank you." She redirected her attention to Feng and his comrade. "Ok, you can drop them off on the twenty-third floor." She smiled and Feng nodded.

"Thank you." He responded with a smile.

From inside the elevator Feng ripped open one of the boxes, for a moment he rummaged through it and picked out a small canister. He passed it to the other Manji and took another canister out for himself.

"There's not of these to last," the other Manji commented. "We don't even know where the child is." He concluded.

` "I know but, we'll have to make it work," Feng grumbled. "It's up to the others to figure out where the kid is." Feng pulled off a band that held his hair in a ponytail and the hair flowed down to his shoulders. To his side he reached for two medium poles, tied together by strong rope, he held them in his hand and looked at the other Manji.

"If we're planning on getting out of here alive this can't be a long assault." The other Manji explained. The bell on the elevator chimed on the twelfth floor and as the doors opened a new path Feng sighed.

On the street the Yoshimitsu peered out the window at the building waiting for the sign to move on. The young man did nothing but, sat quietly next to him looking at the other side of the truck. The driver spoke quietly in a prayer for luck while the other Manji remained in silence.

"Tell me something," the Yoshimitsu began suddenly without looking away from the building, the young man looked towards him, the sound of his voice evident that he was talking to him and no one else. "If it were someone in your family would you have done this?" He asked, without a pause the young man answered.

"I'm not bonded by blood to anyone."

"But if you were, if it were your brother, or father…" His voice trailed off.

"It depends," the Yoshimitsu looked at the young man with an expression that asked what it depended on. "It depends on if, at the end of this day, you feel you have acquired success."

In the distance thunder boomed, the violent sound so meek in the background, the trucks lowly hummed in its idling. Familiar sounds filled the space, the spatter of loose rain, the trucks, the thunder, the breathing of the Manji and the life of the city all around them. Cutting through the familiarity a foreign sound crackled into existence.

"We're almost there," Feng's voice sounded from the communicators, slightly distorted with an electrical hiss. "Stand by."

The other Manji looked out their windows, waiting for the sign that would begin their mission. The silence of the rain and city filling each truck, slowly to capacity like water flooding a sunken room, a domestic car passed by them, the slick of the rain slapping against the space between the rubber of the tire and the ground. All minds focused on Feng and what he was doing in the building, they waited impatiently, staring gawking. Scared, excited, focus and delayed in thought, the heat of battle was nothing compared to the iciness of the wait for it.

With a slow suddenness it happened. A flash of light and then nothing, followed by another flash of light, tranquility and then again and again. A brief recess from that pattern and then the crashing of windows, several of them, shattering and raining down to the ground. People on the street looked up at the sudden violence and within seconds a slow file of smoke crept out of the broken windows.

"Go!" The Yoshimitsu ordered and within seconds the driver slammed his foot onto the gas pedal and the truck, loudly groaned to life careening itself towards the building. In succession the other trucks did the same, flying through the street in a sudden violence that captured the eyes of everyone nearby.

The first truck slammed without prejudice into the glass front of the building, then with a lurch pulled itself to a stop. The Yoshimitsu quickly threw himself out of the vehicle and the other Manji followed as the other trucks followed suit of the first. The young man readily left the truck and kept one hand on a scabbard sword, a cheap weapon made of molded iron from some useless appliance somewhere.

People in the lobby screamed with fear and took cover away from the invading trucks and Manji, the Yoshimitsu quickly went to the receptionist desk.

"Somewhere you have a list of all the tenants in this buildings and the floors they are on," He began to the receptionist, she nodded fearfully. "I need to see it."

Cautiously the woman reached inside the desk and pulled out a group of papers attached to a brown clip pad and handed it to the Yoshimitsu. For a moment he looked through it flipping the papers methodically.

"Do you know why we're here?" The Yoshimitsu asked, the woman shook her head and breathed heavily. "Someone who works in this building kidnapped my son, because he lost a finite amount of money." The Yoshimitsu explained.

"Please," the woman's cracking voice spoke. "Don't hurt me."

"I would not hurt you if I knew you had no knowledge of the kidnapping." He flipped through more of the papers and spoke calmly.

"I don't know anything." She shivered, the Yoshimitsu nodded.

"I believe you," He handed the clip pad and papers back to the woman calmly and smiled, his eye watched her face broken in tears but, a slight movement also caught his eye. "No!" he shouted whilst trying to grab her arm but, it was too late he finger mashed the button. With anger he clutched the woman by the collar and brought her closer.

"Please don't!" She begged.

"Who does that alarm alert?" He yelled violently, the woman cried and shook her head either in unwillingness to tell him or sheer panic. With a flick of his wrist the Manji leader pulled out the sword of the Yoshimitsu. "The truth!" he demanded, pulling the sword to her face.

"Security level!" The woman blurted in her fear.

"Which floor is that?" The Yoshimitsu asked calmly.

"Twenty Eight in both buildings!" The Yoshimitsu turned from the receptionist and pulled the walkie talkie up to his mouth.

"Be advise security has been alerted to us, level twenty eight is security level." The Yoshimitsu explained, he walked over to the young man.

"A bit late boss," a Manji voice crackled over the radio. "They've been on us since we got in!" the voice complained.

"How many Tseng?" the Yoshimitsu asked. There was a long pause followed by the walkie talkie ctacking to life then dying again.

"I don't know!" Tseng responded with anger. "Isn't that what Feng and Dursha are doing?" No more than a second later Feng's voice came on.

"We're counting about fifty in building two but, security is starting to come down to the first floor now." Feng relayed.

"How many in building one?" the Yoshimitsu asked, again a pause.

"A lot"

"Are they coming from the stairs or the elevators?" The Yoshimitsu asked as he went closer to the elevators.

"Both," Feng answered. "Though the heavy artillery seem to be packed into the elevator"

"Can you slow them down?" The Manji leader asked.

"I'll do what I can but, you need to get out of that lobby, right now." Feng warned.

"Gotcha." The Yoshimitsu answer, he turned to his men. "Come on, we're taking the stairs."

In the other building a full scale battle had already broken out, the Manji fought quickly and vehemently against the, seemingly, endless strain of security guards that emerged from the staircase and elevator. It seemed as though every enemy taken down by the Manji, two more appeared from the elevator or stairs. It was this team of Manjis job to keep the forces in this building from overwhelming the initial strike force but, within a couple of minutes they were overwhelmed themselves. Even worse they knew it wouldn't take long for the Hiroshima police to show up and attempt to shut down the commotion, when they arrived there was the possibility that the confusion could aid the Manji but, it was also possible more enemies were going to be the nail in the coffin for the Manji.

Among the secondary group of Manji was a reddish/brown haired warrior who wore a distinctive fox mask, this Manji moved quickly through the enemies and other Manji. Armed with only a small dagger the Manji defeated foes quickly and with precision. Bulltets flew around them all but, calmly the Manji retaliated doing what they could to keep their enemies from entering the sister building. The fox masked Manji jumped quickly out of the way of an attacker and landed near the squad leader.

"You there!" the squad leader called, the fox masked Manji turned in his direction. "Have you been able to get a good count on our enemies?" He asked, the fox mask Manji shook it's head and suddenly with a jerk moved the squad leader out of the way and took a direct attack to the face. The blow easily knocked off the mask from the Manji's face. Not hesitating the Manji, quickly twisted it's leg into a kick that sent the attacker flying. The squad leader looked at the Manji mouth agape at what he was seeing but, it wasn't the Manji's skill that awed him.

Taking the time to pick up the mask the female Manji kept her eyes on the squad leader almost anticipating an attack from him as well.

"You!" he exclaimed in shock. "You cannot be _here_!" he went on. The young woman sighed and shook her head. Her red hair bouncing with the action.

"This isn't the time for this." She responded but, the squad leader shook his head violently and grabbed her.

"You have to leave this place now!" He demanded. "Do you know what the elders would say if they knew _you_ were _here_!" He screamed.

"If we don't stop this onslaught Yoshimtsu won't have the time to find Gau, stay focused!" the young woman yelled back.

"This is wrong, you can't-" before he could finish the young woman dove forward and grabbed a man, ready to strike the leader, by the arm. With finesse she twisted the arm back and dug the dagger into his side.

"We have to move on," She begged but, the squad leader shook his head and took out the his walkie talkie.

"Sire," he began. "We have a problem." He continued, the communicator crackled to life and the response came quick and desperate.

"This isn't a good time!"

In the first building Feng, swung the staff quickly, knocking down several foes, the young man swung his blunt sword around with the same results but, the chaos was beginning to take its toll on their ability to govern the battle.

"I would surmise these aggressors foretold our appearance this day!" the young man yelled.

"It seems like it, we're lucky we got as far as the twenty ninth floor. Yoshimitsu said Gau is being held just above here." Feng explained, the young man nodded.

"Convenience is often plagued with deception" The young man spoke; Feng turned his face to him.

"A trap?" Feng asked, the young man nodded slowly.

"Possibly, why would young Gau be trapped in an office building this heavily guarded if our enemies didn't think we were coming?" the young man explained.

"You're right."

"We should alert Master immediately." The young man suggested but, Feng shook his head.

"He's already gone ahead to find Gau!" Feng revealed.

"Alone?" The young man asked, surprised, Feng nodded his head. "He must be stopped!"

"How are we going to get to him, we're held up here!" Feng asked.

"I will go alone, try to lead the enemy back down the stairs." The young man ordered, Feng nodded and clutched the young man's shoulder.

"Be careful!"

Quickly she twisted her body completing avoiding the blow that would have crushed her body and with an unmatched finesse dispatched the man easily. The battle was deteriorating quickly. To the Manji's advantage the staircase was blocked off from a small explosion but, in contrast to that good fortune the police had just began to arrive and were indiscriminately firing into the battle zone.

"This isn't going to work," she frowned to herself and pulled her body to the squad leader. "At this rate we won't last long enough to keep serving Yoshimitsu." She declared, with a face of reluctance to even listening to the young woman leader sighed.

"Do you have a suggestion?" He asked, She tossed her hair from her face and took a breath.

"If we could move the battle outside we may gain some more space to move in," She tossed her body to the side and stabbed a man in the arm. "We may also gain the advantage of moving them away from the other building." She suggested, the squad leader frowned and for a moment didn't say anything. Sirens from outside were beginning to blare as more and more cars gathered.

"Even if that could aid us," he began, fighting off an attacker. "How would we move outside the building?" he asked. She nodded understanding the difficulty of the task, the police were already jamming to get into the front door, and there other way out was past hoards of armed security officers coming towards them.

The ground under her feet trembled, she shrugged it off, adrenaline was probably kicking in again causing her to shake. While the forces behind them were strengthening, the forces directly ahead of them were beginning to thin. She looked around, some of her Manji comrades were down, though they were great warriors, they weren't all powerful and retreat was going to be the clear end-all order at this point. The question was when was it going to come? The battle hadn't been waging long but, longer than they were told it was going to be, they were supposed to be grabbing the boy and the retreating right after. At worst they would face a minimal amount of resistance but, that ideal was conflicting with their current reality. It had been five minutes since the last time the Yoshimitsu had said anything over the communication device, what if something went wrong? Where was Feng and why wasn't he saying anything either? With each second that passed it was becoming more evident that this mission was doomed from the start.

The amount of resistance that came at them was clear enough evidence to prove that their attack was foreseen. The ground under her seemed to shake again but, again she shrugged it off and continued forward trying to break the thinning wall of enemies in front of them. To her left the squad leader expertly threw his body to and fro avoiding enemies and breaking down the advisories that came to him but, it wasn't long until even he was bested by an attack fell to the ground. With urgency she threw herself to him and leaned over his body.

"It's just a flesh wound." He quickly claimed, sitting up.

"We're not going to get out of this alive." She admitted; Manji did not know defeat, they knew of retreating and self preservation but, defeat wasn't optional but, even the squad leader's eyes reflected his true feelings about the battle.

"Yoshimitsu must be close to victory we just need to last a little longer." He crouched to one knee but, she shook her head.

"No, we have to-" she felt the ground shake again but, this time a look in the squad leaders' eyes revealed he felt the seismic shift too, it couldn't have been adrenaline. Instinctively she looked up and saw several thick cables stretching one of the high floors in her building to a lower floor in the other building, a few seconds later she saw men, tiny in the distance, rappelling from the ropes into the other building.

"They've just been distracting us this entire time." The squad leader whispered. She sighed loudly, they were going to overrun the other building if they hadn't already done it.

"We've got to warn them," She snatched the communicator from his side and pressed down but, a faint and sick sounding hack came from the machine. She repeated her actions with the same results. For a moment hopelessness filled her body but, then as quickly as it came it was gone, her eyes lazily wandered away from the squad leader as it became clear what she had to do.

"Go on!" the squad leader spoke as he stood up fully. "Someone's got to let them know, I'll hold the rest of them off here." He declared, the young woman nodded and ran off to the exit and quickly snatched up her fox mask as she darted out of the building.

Flicking his wrist slightly but, effectively Feng knocked down another enemy but, was preoccupied with the many more than suddenly appeared within the last few seconds. If there was any hope of getting out of this battle alive he was going to either have to get the retreat order from the Yoshimitsu or be forced to give it without him. Though Feng was still more than half his men strong it wasn't enough to fend off this new wave of enemies. Worse off the heavy armored guards in the elevator were about to find their way out. His men and himself were tired a second of reprieve would do them some good. Feng knew the lower floors were virtually empty, if he could get his down there may have been a chance to give them a second or two of relief from this battle. His actions were conflicted however, if he lead them down he'd be leaving the Yoshimitsu and his young friend who went after him behind and it didn't seem possible that they could fight off this militia of guards off.

Beside him another Manji fell, weakened but, not killed by the battle.

"Can you stand?" Feng asked his comrade. Weakly he nodded and got to his feet. "If you were me what would you do about this mess?" Feng asked the other Manji, the boy no older than fifteen shook his head.

"We haven't completed our mission." He answered.

"And despite that?" Feng asked; regretfully the boy was silent.

"Our men can't last much longer against this endless battle," the boy truthfully answered. "If we were to retreat we could meet up with the others, they may be faring better than us." Feng nodded, it made sense, if they could lead the group outside then maybe they could become one strike team again and stand a better chance.

"Retreat!" Feng yelled loud enough for all the Manji to hear, they didn't stop battling but, a slowing in their action revealed to him that they understood. "And take as many of them with you as you can!" The boy next to Feng smiled and grabbed the nearest guard before tossing himself and the guard out the window.

Feng followed grabbing the arm of two men and throwing himself clean out the window before letting them go. As he fell Feng took his staff and plunged it with all his might into the concrete of the building and it stuck, halting his free fall. All around him Manji bolted out the window with guards following, the Manji quickly grabbing ledges or stabbing weapons into the walls to stop their fall. Glass and bodies fell quickly and the Manji scaled the side of the building until they reached the ground. The other Manji crowded around Feng and he dusted himself.

"Will meet up with the others and make a choice to stay, let's go!" he ordered; the Manji cheered and they ran to the twin building, blocked by law enforcement cruisers. As Feng ran to the next battlefield he saw a Manji approaching him at top speed wearing a fox mask, Feng called to the Manji as it got closer.

"Hey, we've retreated the building!" he informed but, the Manji didn't seem to hear or acknowledge him. Instinctively he threw himself in the way of the Manji to stop him but, the Manji balled his fist and slammed it into Feng's chest pushing out the way. Reeling from the sudden attack Feng turned and watched as the Manji ran into the building.

"What the hell is going on?" He asked but, the sound of gunfire filled his ears and he was forced to continue onward, leaving the Manji behind.

In the first building away from the gunfire and battles Gau sat on his knees next to the man. The man's hair black like darkness and clumped together like bits of tar, it stood upon his head as if only being held there by some demand from the head. His chest square and his legs slightly crooked, the right one longer than the left.

On the other side of the room the door burst open and the Yoshimitsu stood there, in the doorway looking in. Slowly he walked in and stared at the man.

"Father!" Gau called.

"It's over." The Yoshimitsu voice called over the silence of the room and the violent roar of the battle down below.

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing." The man's voice had a strange quality to it. The sound one imagine a snake to make if it were coughing up prey it couldn't swallow. Swiftly he pulled out a gun, black as his hair but, with a sheen the follicles lacked.

"Give me back my son." The Yoshimitsu demanded coming into the room slowly. The man shook his head and his hair bounced irregularly with the motion.

"Give me back my money," the man countered calmly, before barking. "All of it!"

"Your money was an instrument to do evil. A tool to torture and hurt others while filling your world of poison and malice." The Yoshimitsu explained.

"Yeah well," The man smirked. "I liked spending it." The man grabbed Gau by the collar and pulled him towards him.

"The life of an innocent is in no way equal to that of money," The Yoshimitsu explained. "surely your twisted mind could understand that."

"You know," The man, squinted his beady eyes and licked the back of his teeth. "I'm starting to think that you didn't bring my money with you."

"Your callousness will be rectified here today!" The Yoshimitsu declared but, the man only shook his head more.

"You know with all the people you brought here with you, I thought you'd be smarter than this," He started. "I remember hearing about your clan, 'expert thieves' lead by a fearless leader. But I see they don't have a sensibility requirement." The man went on.

"Your treachery ends here."

"I've had enough." He took the gun and pointed it at the Yoshimitsu, facing it sideways and just as the Yoshimitsu prepared himself for action, the man swung the gun and the blast rocked the room.

For a moment they all hung there, in silence as if time had stopped and then like a rock Gau hit the floor. The Yoshimitsu's body jerked forward and then froze again. The crimson blood of the young boy flowed onto the grey floor slowly, eventually its slow creep touching the man's black shoes. A feeble whimper came from the Manji leader and his locked eyes slowly turned to the man.

"You see what happens when you meddle in other people's money?" The man asked, his disgusting black hair falling in front of his face. The Yoshimitsu's face completely jerked to meet the gaze of the man, his skin red as his eyes now flushed, holding back the faintest resistance of tears.

In a sudden burst, the Manji leader leapt forward with a yell that could project fear into the heart of a lion. Thinking quickly the man aimed the gun but, was too slow, the swift flick of the sword cut the gun clean into two. Shocked the man's eyes bulged but, failed to see the second cut deep into his arm.

The Manji leader kicked him over and slammed the sword to his chest but did not penetrate.

"Murderer!" he yelled with pain, the man lifted his hands in protest to the Yoshimitsu's attack. "You will _die_ a murderers death!" The Yoshimitsu raised the sword back ready to strike.

"Cease!" A voice called from the doorway, the Yoshimitsu turned to his interrupter. Standing in the doorway was the young man, his chest heaving in exhaustion. "You cannot murder that foul monster!" He demanded.

"Stand down boy!" The Yoshimitsu shouted back, his body quivered in fear, the man didn't move, the wound on his arm bled more than Gau's head, which sputtered blood every so often and then lightly dripped.

"You must stand down!" The young man demanded. "You know it is law, you cannot send this man into expiration with malice within your heart. It will corrupt you and the blade. He must be tried by some other means!" The boy reminded; for a moment the Yoshimitsu hesitated, looking at the blade and then the bleeding man.

"He killed my," his voice cracked as he looked at Gau. "my son, is dead!" The Yoshimitsu screamed.

"That may be of fact but, you have to preserve the sword and the way of this Clan, if you murder him you will fall to corruption. You swore an oath to uphold the way of this clan, you MUST abstain!" The young man called back, the Yoshimitsu said nothing for a long moment, looking at the blade and his dead son.

"You're asking me to pardon my son's killer?" The Yoshimitsu asked softly to the young man. The young man nodded.

"You must, if you wish to honor him." The young man answered. The Yoshimitsu looked down at his feet and his blade went lazy for a moment.

"I can't." He whispered and with the force of his arm he lifted the blade for the killing blow.

As the sword came down the Yoshimitsu felt something plunge into the left side of his body, the sword still gripped in his hand missed it's mark completely and his body went flying with a crash through the window. The young man did what he thought he could, tackling his leader through the window where they flew from one building, into the other crashing violently through another window and onto the cold floor.

Just as he tackled, she rushed into the room, to see the commotion. Her eyes reeled from the sheer weight of what was happening in the room. Her friend and her leader going through the window, the blood of the man filling the floor and the blood of Gau oozing slowly. She heard everything as she was racing up the steps, her heart filled with conflict. When she heard the other window crash her heart fell to her feet, she had to stop them before it was too late and so she turned around and raced back down the stairs to get help.

However quick the fall may have been, in the time that the Yoshimitsu and the young man were flying through the air, the situation became more dire. It was clear the Yoshimitsu didn't understand or accept one of the young man's actions. Rage filled his eyes and his body contorted wickedly as the two men fell intertwined, the young man both regretted and praised his actions a moment before. The corruption of the leader of the Manji was among one of the worst things that could happen to the clan. The sword reserved judgment for those who came against the Manji leader, if the wielder was to strike with anything but a passive mind then reservation was stolen from the blade and the balance between the master and blade would be severed. Once that happened it was hard to tell what would happen next, the sword _was_ a cursed one and the only thing that kept its cursed attitude in-line was its feeding off the evils of the people it chose to slay but, it held its judgment as absolute and any wielder who deemed his judgment higher than it was bound to be betrayed.

Yet still the man who killed Gau was more than likely to be chosen for death by the blade, there was a chance that even if the Yoshimitsu had struck him down it may have very well been the same choice as the blade but, the risk was too great. From within the air the rushing wind nearly deafened both men but, their senses were able to pick up the battle happening down below, gun fire, sirens, screams and explosions, for the split second the two men could experience that chaos it all seemed still and organized in its dazzling visual display.

The second glass window shattered under both of their weights and a moment later they both hit the floor and stumbled across the room. The young man wasn't able to rebound as quick as the masterful Yoshimitsu who spun out of control for a moment but, resulted in him crouching with his eyes trained on the young man. In two fluid motions, that would blur into one to the human eye, the Manji leader leapt forward and snatched his blade into an attack position.

Just coming to the young man could see the master coming towards him and in desperation threw his body out of the way. The Yoshimitsu growled in anger and grief as the young man stood up quickly, he held his hands out in front of him in a begging gesture.

"Cease with this action!" the young man shouted. "Take a moment to confer with your heart about what you wish to do!" The Yoshimitsu said nothing but, tossed himself forward again, this time the young man did more to prevent injury by pulling up his scabbard weapon and deflecting the blow away from him. His blade of shaped iron was no match for the Yoshimitsu, within moments the other blade would slice through his with ease and he'd be defenseless, so he kept his weapon sheathed to reduce the damage. Two more slashes that landed on the swords small armor, pushed the young man back towards the window. The blade of the Yoshimitsu glowed slightly, all his life the young man looked up to this man and that weapon and never in his worst nightmares did he ever imagine that both would be turned against him as an enemy.

In many ways, this battle didn't seem worth fighting. Every idea and dream of virtuosity and truth was being twisted into a disgusting, cursed disaster. Even if this came to some result that was worthy, even if the Yoshimitsu came to his senses and stopped fighting him, what would happen then? There was now a distrust there, the young man knew it, the Yoshimitsu knew it and worse of all the sword knew it.

The young man tossed himself away from the window and kept his eye on the Manji leader who, now, was breathing heavily.

"You let that murderer get away with killing my son." The man spoke with an understated anger that stung the young man deep within his soul. The young man's body was shaking, he held the scabbard sword with an equal resolve. His stomach floundered and his mind casted doubt every second, he did not want to fight this battle. Most people struggled with being lead but, not he, he was fine with following this man, he knew he was trustworthy but, now he had fight this battle, against his own beliefs.

"You know _why_ I had to do that, if we end this destructive conflict now, we can salvage what's left of your leadership." The young man pleaded.

"What's _left_?" the Yoshimitsu screamed. "There isn't anything left for me, my son is dead!" He swung his blade at the air. "murdered because of this 'designation of esteemed power'. I don't want this anymore!" He gestured to the sword. "It has stolen from me many things but, yet I cannot let go, it won't let me, it holds my soul and my body!" downstairs something shook violently. "All I want now, is to avenge my son." The last words fell from his mouth in an exhaustive plea. The young man felt his mouth beginning to give the permission, permission that he didn't own but, was in his hand. But he knew he could not and instinctively his head slowly denied.

"Your son's fate is decided," the young man said apologetically, a tear fell from his face, blocked off by the black shine of his hair. "Tearing down the fate of the Manji will not offer a solution to his-"

"Don't say it!" The Yoshimitsu barked, anger spewing from his mouth in burst of saliva, that flew through the air. "Don't you say it boy!" he spoke like an angry father, like his angry father. The young man felt berated, attacked as if he had ne the ultimate wrong.

"You mustn't go on this way," the young man went on, sheepishly, his confidence shattered around him like the window. "Gau is gone and you cannot avenge him."

The end of his words sent the Manji leader into a fury, his body blasted forward and attacked the young man with all his might. Both their muscles flexed one set with the desperateness to live and one with the fever to kill. The clanging swords echoed louder than any explosion and the sputtered breath's of the fighting man shook the fabric of air around them.

A quick stab snapped the protective layer of the sheath and with a pull the entire cover of the young man's blade was tossed aside. It was so quick the young man missed it entirely and in an attempt to push the Manji leader back, he exploited an opening in his stomach.

The shock of the fatal blow, could have possibly been more damaging to the young man than to the fallen leader. The Manji leader's breath exploded from his chest and into the face of the young man and the young man let go of his hilt as if it was suddenly on fire.

For a moment they stood there, looking at one another as reality sunk in. The Yoshimitsu's eyes softened as he fell to his knees. The young man's blade stuck in his abdomen unmoving. The wound wasn't disgusting, blood didn't tear out from it like a river, or a sputtering fountain. The Manji leader grabbed the hilt but, in his weakness was unable to move it, he then chuckled.

"A fitting end." He spoke, the young man shook his head violently.

"I didn't mean to!" He begged. "I didn't know." The Yoshimitsu uncomfortably laid himself onto the ground and the young man, now a boy again, knelt closer to him.

"I guess I went too far…" the Manji leader humorously admitted.

"You're going to be ok." The boy demanded more than he reassured.

"No," the leader said calmly. "I'm not" The Manji leader corrected

"But," the boy whimpered.

"Listen," the man started, gone was the belligerence that was in his voice was gone and returned was the sound of wisdom that the boy knew and missed. "This was my fault," he began, he moved his hand stiffly touch the young man. " You shouldn't regret what you just did," He smiled through a stiff wince. "I let myself go and you have rectified my error."

"If we get you to some type of hospital-" the young man started but, was interrupted by the Yoshimitsu's laugh.

"You've been a better Manji than I," he paused, the brink of death filling his eyes. "Don't stop."

The Yoshimitsu went limp and the boy felt his eyes fill with tears that laid restrained without falling. He started into the lifeless face of the Yoshimitsu for a moment that felt like his entire lifetime but, the gaze was broken by a sound in the doorway. Quickly in fear but, not clear of what, he turned and saw the fox mask and figure staring back at him. A small whimper came through the mask and he knew the person, whom he didn't recognize, was a Manji.

"It's not," he sputtered "it's not what it looks like." The whisper concluded. It was clear the Manji didn't hear him but, within a moment the Manji took off its mask. To his surprise her face was looking back at him, her eyes welled up with tears as well, dumfounded by what she saw in front of her.

"It isn't what it seems" the young man spoke louder, still in her astounded trance she nodded and her face fought to speak up.

"I heard everything…" the words stumbled out of her mouth, like bricks off the roof of a shattered building.

"We have to-" his voice cracked and in an effort to regain the lost composure he cleared his throat and stood. She gasped slightly as she beheld the view in front of her, the blood of the Yoshimitsu deep red on the young man's chest. "We have to take his body back to the village for immolation." The young man demanded; still fixated on the gripping reality, she answered absently.

"Feng is overwhelmed, we have to retreat."

"Feng will make it," he spoke strongly. "_You_ have to help me bring him back."

For a moment she stood there and the world collapsed around her. She was standing in an empty room, dark, only filled with the body of her leader and her friend standing there, the apparent killer. But somewhere inside her she knew something had changed forever and there was only one path she could take.

"Ok," She nodded, she tied her mask to her belt, quickly and with an unconscious precision that betrayed that she had done it countless times before. "Let's go." She walked forward to him, to the body, to the dead Yoshimitsu as the young man turned around and knelt over it. Her hands felt cold, the adrenaline of the battle that was raging below was gone, in its stead was a quiet calm that, though peaceful, was horrifying and new.

The nights at the Manji village were shadowy, surrounding every corner of the main amphitheatre were trees but, within it there were none, so the stars gleamed uninterrupted down at the stage, lit by tall burning torches. As if the sky was a dark, black eye with multiple pupils winking serenely at the Manji people.

On the stage one, older man, stood waiting as another came up the stairs, followed by someone else and between them was the body of the fallen Manji leader. The night was cold and the wind seldom as if taking pity upon the situation, the heat of the torches even felt distilled as he walked by to approach.

Exhausted and without the energy of grief or relief, the young man lurched to the Manji elder while, his companion quietly followed at a distance. The older man's face was solid, like a worn stone. He didn't seem angry, or sad, or upset or even surprised, he just stood there waiting. The young man knelt before the fallen Manji leader.

"Boy," the older man's voice split through the night. The young man felt his body jump in shock, he looked up and met the older man's gaze.

"Yes?" The young man called back.

"She is dismissed, and you may dismiss her." He pointed to the young woman but, the young man shook his head.

"She is vital." He spoke.

"In what way?" the elder Manji asked with genuine surprise.

"She serves as a witness to the death of our leader." The young man explained; the older Manji's eyes bulged at the revelation and he turned his gazed to the young woman who could not face his gaze directly but, looked at it in a small pool of water that had collected between them from earlier rain.

"Is this true?" The Manji elder prodded. She took a deep breath, her answer felt wrong and it left her mouth.

"Yes." She spoke sullenly. The Manji elder sighed with anger loudly and then turned his attention back to the young man.

"Then she must stay," the elder spoke gruffly. "Her punishment for being on a battlefield, through deception will be discussed later," He strongly commanded to the both of them, her stomach fell. "Is that understood?"

"Yes" they both answered, nearly simultaneously

"How has the Yoshimitsu been killed?" The elder Manji asked; The young man gulped.

"Great Kunimitsu," the young man began. "Our leader was killed by my hand." He finished, tears again choked themselves just behind his eyes.

"How?" the question was plain and without surprise.

"We sparred and I was victorious," the young man explained. "I tried to still his hand from corruption and he took me for an enemy." The Kunimitsu nodded slowly.

"And the sword?" the Kunimitsu asked.

"It had not struck a blow through his malice," the young man explained.

"Then it is uncorrupted…" the Kunimitsu surmised.

"Yes." He nodded again and his gaze returned to the young woman, his granddaughter, who looked him in the eye finally.

"Is this all of truth?" the Kunimitsu asked.

"Yes."

"Then a new leader must be appointed, one who will be stronger than our last great leader. Who will overcome the corruptions of grief and revenge." The Kunimitsu spoke. "And since I am the heir of the sword…" he continued.

"Aye" the young man agreed.

"I choose you to take his place." The Kunimitsu revealed. Both the young woman and man looked up from the wooden panels in utter shock. The young man stood, an unorthodox motion, at the proclamation.

"But I-"

"You've shown the ability and focus to take the blade, you are suited to be a Manji leader," The Kunimitsu stood, while the young girl looked perplexed at the events unfolding. "Now what say you to his proposal? With you take the place as Yoshimitsu?"

The question spiraled in his mind quickly; he never thought of it as a possible reality before. Every Manji who entered the battle force dreamed of having the prestige and wisdom to be chosen to be the Yoshimitsu. This was life, they say that, dreams were made of, and here he was young and broken being asked to take the ultimate glory. And the boy answered.

"No."

The Kunimitsu and the young woman both gasped aloud at the answer, how could he _not_ take this role when being offered by the, current, highest member of the Manji clan?

"What?" The Kunimitsu asked in shock, he intended the word 'why' to be asked but, he did not expect that response.

"Today I saw the death of a hero, I've been in many battles and I do consider myself strong and worthy of merit but," He looked the Kunimitsu in the eye. "This isn't my place, my heart is broken and my mind is filled with confusion. I doubt the sword would even deem me worthy," He took a deep breath. "The role of Yoshimitsu should go to you, the Kunimitsu." He lightly demanded. The Kunimitsu sat and thought for a long moment, looking at the boy with a different set of eyes.

"Is this what you want?" He asked again, unclear of the young man's conflict but, the young man nodded.

"Aye." The older Manji stood again and walked to the body of the fallen Yoshimitsu, slowly he touched the hilt of the fabled leader's weapon and picked it up sheathed.

"And do you agree with his decision?" He spoke suddenly to his granddaughter, whose shock suggested she may have fainted in that very moment. She looked around as if looking for the answer but, only found her young friend's eyes. This wasn't something she was ever prepared to experience, this went against all types of hopes and desires but, he seemed sure.

"If it is his true feelings," she began. "Then I support him."

Her grandfather nodded and raised his eyebrows, the sword in his hand, his eyes betrayed that he was somewhat wary of taking the high role of Manji leader.

"I studied the Manji a long time," he talked. "Never have I come across an event in which the recipient turns down the chance to be one with the sword." His sentiments were obvious but, the sound of it relayed back to them was heavy. "I accept your wishes, I will take the role, if the sword chooses." With a sudden jerk, the older man threw off the scabbard and held the blade up. In the darkness in began to glow slightly, the signal that the sword approved of its new possessor.

For the first moment that day, the young man felt a sense of relief. He smiled and knelt again to the, now, Yoshimitsu.

"Your leadership will be stern and good." He spoke, the new Yoshimitsu smiled and touched the boy lightly on his black hair.

"Go, gather the others, we will deliver this information together and immolate our former leader in grandness." The boy stood and bowed slightly before turning away and walking past his female friend. "You are also dismissed." The Yoshimitsu called to her.

She turned and walked with the young man, the flame from the torch burned hot against their skin, and the wind blew with a frigid forgiveness a second later and as they walked down the stairs to tell the others of the death and new appointment of the Yoshimitsu, she looked into his face but, he didn't turn to her, he looked forward content and in his contentment she felt a confidence she had never felt before, not one of arrogance or of her own but, in him.

And though he had denied a position as leader, he felt like one.


	8. Genesis

_Another Time, Another Place…_

_ The brook flowed weakly, weaker than any other body of water around. No, there was no rushing flow of bubbling water, green as an emerald, frothing into white foam against smooth body of a stern mountain, in its stead was a tiny, barely alive brook that trickled slightly. It's appendages flowed quickly downhill, some breaking off here and there, obscured by small rocks, insects or a fallen leaf._

_ At the bottom of the hill there was nothing. There was nothing here, not an ounce of water, not a grasp of grain. The sun hung in the sky like a perverse ornament, pressing down onto the ground and onto his body mercilessly. Burning and burning not stop, even when the clouds blocked it or when the cover of night over took the sky it burned somewhere, endlessly. How he hated that think that looked down at him like an unforgiving eye but, he wished it would burn and burn until one day it would burn out and wink into darkness. And the stars would twinkle and in it's death rain would fall and trickle down the sides of mountains, like the blood trickled down his forehead. Slowly and deliberately, as if trying to pull the skin from his bone._

_ To what end would this circumstance bring him to? The pain, the suffering, what sort of life was this? These questions didn't require answers but, he asked silently to no avail. And so he thought silently: Where was he? Weakly he tried to turn to his right, his bones creaked with every moment but, there was nothing there. He turned to his left and a sweeping wind wrapped around him and it spoke:_

_ 'You are broken, like a hapless tree, how will you walk with no legs?'_

_ There was no answer to that, he was broken, in several pieces, his arms sprawled next to him like dead things on trees, his legs were over there, a meter away, contorted strangely so they were barely recognizable. The brook trickled under around him, his body separating its, already weakened, flow, the flow going every way away from his body, no longer one brook but, now several broken puddles. Wet dirty and bloodied, what was there to say?_

_ 'Have you no wishes on the subject of your broken body?' _

_ Where was this voice coming from? Was he dreaming? Even if he were, did it matter? He might as well answer, there was comfort in talking, even if it meant talking to a phantom. He turned right to speak to the imaginary spectator…No…no, it was not there, it wasn't anywhere but, most of all it wasn't to his right. He turned left and a light sparked near his eyes, so bright in blinded him so and yet, his eyes widened and he did not look away._

_ "I Wish I could walk."_

_ 'For what?'_

_ The light began to hurt him so, for something not there it pained him in such a way that he could not blink. EVERYTHING hurt but, when with his body was in total pain all over, nothing was painfully discriminated and yet, this light on his eye burned long and hard enough for him to feel it. _

_ "So I can leave this place and-" The light flickered out and he looked forward again, at his legs, meters away and he felt them twitch._

_ 'If it is your wish should I not do it?'_

_ It sounded familiar but, not someone he had met, blood on his arm he knew the reality, he was dying and this was delirium at its worse but, at least his psyche was attempting to comfort him into death. He turned right again but, oh how ODD it felt to turn that way and so painfully he turned right and the light returned. There was nothing there but, it was less to his right than it was to actual existence. He spoke to his left._

_ "Who are you?"_

_ There was no answer but, his knee twitched, painfully but, when was the last time his leg twitched? The light blinded him and it burned his eyes so terribly and yet he could not look away, how could one look away from something that was so clearly not there?_

_ "Can I walk now?" he asked sensing something had changed._

_ 'Only if you wish it so'_

_ For a long moment the light burned his eyes until they began to tear and bleed and then it vanished and he looked forward again. His mind was wracked with confusion, what was this? If he was awake, he wished to be sleep, if he was asleep, he wished to be dead and if he were dead he wished to have some peace of finality. But yet his body suffered and he knew suffering was finite. He could lie there, but he knew he would not die, this was a strange dream, so why not go along with it._

_ And his hand gripped at the solid earth, so hard that his fingernails peeled back in agony but, he ignored it pain was pain, his hand gripped into a fist, one that could never be pried open._


	9. 15 to 14 Years Before Tekken I

"At this rate, I assure you, the JACK program will never be completed." The old wrinkled face frowned at the man looking at him, his eyes narrowing on one in particular, like sharp knives being groomed to be thrown into a target. The collective exhaustion in the room was beginning to take its toll on everyone. A few lazy yawns here and there at first, escalating into rude grunts of displeasure and anger.

"We have spent a fortune on this project," Another man spoke up, his voice sizzling with anger being barely held back. "and even more money on your personal compensation, and now you're telling us you're not going to complete the project?" He asked; Abel shook his head and laid his hand on the table in front of him. Behind him and outside the conference room, three men in black uniforms watched closely through the glass. Abel had barged his way into the conference room again, at the head of table Heihachi Mishima gave them a stern look, keeping them at bay until he deemed it necessary for them to remove Abel from the room.

"But your incompetent workers haven't yet completed any of the task I've given them!" Abel rose his voice as well, several of the men at the table shook their heads and rubbed the bridge of their noses.

"This is a project like no other, it's not going to come together in a couple of days Abel." Heihachi spoke softly.

"I have worked diligently to make sure this project was cutting edge but, that's no reason to accept defeat" Abel boasted.

"You haven't been defeated, your demands get more ludicrous as the days go on!" the first man shouted.

"I thought the Mishima Zaibatsu was dedicated to finish this program, not just issuing empty promises."

"What exactly do you want?" Heihachi asked quickly, Abel looked at Heihachi.

"I need direct control over the project" Abel admitted frankly, he raised his voice over the groans of the other members in the room. "No supervision, no over lookers, no permission slips! If I had the ability to work on this project without these idiotic constraints I'd be able to get answers to the common problems we're having." Abel explained.

"You know why we can't do that," Heihachi sighed. "We're already at odds because someone out there has plans for the JACKS, we can't risk whatever mistake we made before happening again." Heihachi explained.

"Who the hell would I be working for other than the Zaibatsu?" Abel demanded. "You know why I came to this country, and you know that whomever stole the plans can't be working out of Japan, so how could I be working for them?" Abel explained.

Heihachi mulled over the fact that what Abel said was truth. Abel was in Germany in 1941 just as Hitler was mobilizing the Nazi's, fearing that he'd be recruited by the Nazi's in their scientific studies he plotted to exit flee the country with a rival and colleague of his, Geppetto Boskonovitch, and mentor Albert Einstein. While Abel and Boskonovitch's absence wasn't missed Einstein's was, and the Nazi's went into pursuit of Einstein causing the three to separate to thin out the Nazi forces. Einstein to the United States, Boskonovitch to South America and Abel floated around Europe until the Japanese bombed pearl harbor and the Mishima Zaibatsu, amongst other large corporations declared Japan's actions wrong. Abel fled to Japan and sought refuge in their government, citing he could help the Japanese avoid serious retaliation from the West. At first the Japanese didn't comply but, when Einstein's name was mention they accepted his deal. Abel contacted his mentor in America and through his and the various corporations of Japan the American government halted their initial plans to drop the, newly created, Atomic bomb.

Because of that Abel was being treated by the Japanese government as a silent hero. Because of the bomb not being dropped Japan's economy didn't falter too much and years after the end of the second world war Japan was one of the top economies in the world. Leaving Japan was possible for Abel but, not probable.

"It's a big risk and we've already given you a lot of benefits." Heihachi explained.

"The failure of this project is a bigger risk." Abel countered; Heihachi frowned but, was already tired of the discussion.

"If you had control the Zaibatsu would be willing to give you Forty-nine percent of ownership of the project." Heihachi spoke, Abel and all the board members in the room were taken aback at the sudden generosity Heihachi was bestowing. "However if you take this deal you will be forced to give up whatever benefits you have not received and see a cease to the reoccurring ones." Heihachi explained; Abel watched Heihachi incredulously as if expecting him to change his mind.

"Forty-nine percent?" Abel repeated.

"No more, we need to keep the advantage so we can sell this to other countries and make a profit, one government contract should keep you satisfied financially." Heihachi explained; Abel's face remained the same for a moment and the board members looked from the demanding scientist to the head of the Mishima Zaibatsu as if watching some sort of sporting event, intensified by a rivalry.

"I don't want to be pushed to the side," Abel's face melted into a glare.

"What do you mean?" Heihachi asked calmly; Abel pointed his finger at Heihachi. Initially when he did this is annoyed Heihachi but, after seeing several times that this was only a last ditch effort to be rude when Abel felt as if he was losing his edge in the argument, the gesture almost reassured Heihachi.

"I want my name attached to the JACK program. I don't want it to be some random Zaibatsu project, lead by some no name leader but, helmed by the great Heihachi Mishima" Abel explained with malice to the name. Heihachi shrugged.

"If fame is what you desire, I would encourage you to take this deal and finish the project as soon as humanly possible." Heihachi explained; Abel's eyes shot to some of the other board members who seemed more at ease with the conversation now, than in its beginning.

"I expect this in writing." Abel explained, Heihachi nodded.

"It shouldn't take more than a few hours to draw up an agreement." Heihachi stared straight into Abel's eyes unflinching until Abel nodded and stormed out of the room dramatically. Some of the board members laughed when he left and all turned to Heihachi.

"We'll have to make sure when we write up that agreement to include that whomever gets the first contract for JACKs also gets to take Abel out of our hair." The board members laughed at Heihachi's apparent deception and continued on with their meeting.

19 Months later.

The sheer vastness of Heihachi's celebrity didn't really sink in until now. Sitting in the headquarters for the Chinese police force, Heihachi was all but, too aware of the stares he was getting by the many Chinese police as well as the crowd that was gathering outside the station in anticipation of seeing the business tycoon when he exited. They wouldn't however, Heihachi already had plans to leave from an underground roadway that lead opposite to where the crowd had gathered.

Sitting in a black suit with a blue dress shirt and white tie, Heihachi patiently waited for his investigator to walk into the room. He felt slightly uncomfortable in this room, all the officers were looking in to get a glance at Heihachi, he felt like an animal in a zoo of some sort. He wasn't sure why he was famous, he was rich, yes but, the Zaibatsu was no different than any other company.

It was probably because he was nearly killed here all those years back, while on that business trip. It was a spectacular attempt but, that was nearly two decades ago, he couldn't believe people still thought about it. But that was why he was in China, the investigation of who was involved in both the attempts on his life in China. As he reminisced on the events the door opened and a familiar face walked into the room.

"Well it's always good to see that face!" The man exclaimed, Heihachi stood up and shook the man's hand and smiled.

"It's good to see you too Kai," Heihachi extended his gratitude to Kai Wulong, who was still head of the Chinese police force.

"Things going well in the Mishima Financial Empire?" Kai asked; Heihachi frowned but, nodded his head.

"It's a constant battle but, yes it's doing well," Heihachi explained; Kai smiled and sat down behind a desk and took out a folder packed to the brim with papers. "Is that all mine?" Heihachi asked dumbfounded.

"Yeah," Kai opened the folder and flipped through a couple of papers. "I'm going to spare you the bureaucratic bullshit and tell you none of this contains anything close to an answer to who's been trying to kill you," Kai bluntly explained; Heihachi grunted. "Any of any interest I've found comes from personal testimony." Kai explained.

"What exactly does that mean?" Heihachi asked, Kai leaned closer to Heihachi and spoke seriously.

"It means, I've been doing some personal digging," Kai explained. "It's strange that all the evidence in anything involving you and some type of large explosion goes missing as soon as it's supposed to be handed to me." Kai explained.

"That is an odd set of occurrences." Heihachi agreed.

"It made me think some of the higher ups had something to do with it," Kai continued. "So I did some personal investigation, looking at the family, friends and business partners of the men involved in some of the attacks. Naturally none of them came back to anyone I knew but, I did notice some of these people had a man named Daniel Herenger in common." Kai explained.

"Who's that?" Heihachi asked, more interested than he thought he would be.

"I'm pretty sure it's an alias for some kind of business, either that or this guy the richest person we've never heard of," He handed Heihachi a sheet of paper. "That's some records we've found on this Herenger character. He dishes out fifty-thousand dollars two weeks before the attacks on you to three different people, then an hour after the attacks another fifty-thousand gets sent to some seemingly random people." Kai went on

"But…" Heihachi added.

"But, each of the people who's getting a cut of the second fifty thousand are registered in a different country with the same addresses as the first three men." Kai explained. "The money is then withdrawn by someone claiming to be a business partner and the men are bailed out." Kai concluded.

"What's this all mean?" Heihachi asked.

"It means me have a central person to focus on. Daniel Herenger, problem is this guy doesn't seem to exist." Kai sat back in his seat and crossed his legs. "My guess is that it's an alias for an organization of some sort." Kai deduced.

"Like the triads?" Heihachi asked but, Kai shook his head and frowned.

"I've seen their work before, their crafty but, not very secretive, if they were trying to kill you it wouldn't be guess work." Kai looked at some more papers.

"Same with the Yakuza"

"Take out the regional gangs with the funds to do a hit like this, then the ones without and what do you have left?" Kai asked; Heihachi thought for a moment.

"The Government?" Heihachi asked; Kai nodded.

"That's what I was thinking, that or some sort of company you've made angry," Kai deduced. "Can you think of any?"

Heihachi sighed and thought for a long moment, another set of officers walked by the room and looked in to see Heihachi and then continued on whispering to one another.

"The Zaibatsu has worked with many different corporations in the past, It could be any one of them." Heihachi began. "And I've been more than generous with the Chinese and Japanese government, I can't see why they go so far as to kill me." Heihachi explained.

"Control of the Zaibatsu?" Kai asked.

"Not likely, the Zaibatsu has a clause written in with every government contract, saying that no official of a government, in which we have been or are contracted with, can ever hold a job in Zaibatsu. It's just to keep the playing field fair for everybody. They'd have to go through some horrible legal messes to get around something like that." Heihachi enlightened; Kai smiled slightly.

"Well that's good news," He said. "Because I've managed to track down a plot of land owned by this Daniel Herenger, I didn't want to go and investigate and find out it's a government owned facility and then have to explain my actions but, I guess I can give you the location and you can check for yourself." Kai handed over a piece of paper to Heihachi, who looked at it for a long moment.

"Do you know anything else about this place?" Heihachi asked.

"It looks like an office," Kai went on. "It's small, in a building that rents out professional spaces." Kai concluded, Heihachi grunted.

"I suppose you think it's being monitored." Heihachi spoke,

"I do, it'd be best to go at night," Kai's voice trailed off. "I'm not condoning breaking and entering but," he finished. Heihachi scratched his head, it was more information that he thought he was going to get.

"Well, I guess I should thank you." Heihachi said as he began to stand.

"It's not a problem," Kai smiled. "I feel a little guilty not being able to get to the bottom of this sooner."

"It's fine, the truth will be brought to light." Heihachi reassured. "How's your son?" Heihachi asked. Kai face lit up and he gave a bashful smile.

"He's fine he just turned eight last week." Kai explained; Heihachi smiled.

"That's good," there was an awkward pause, the talk of sons was stifling in the room. "Well, I'm off, thanks for the information, I'll let you know what happened."

In the subbasement parking lot Heihachi sat at the wheel of his car for a long moment. He hadn't found another driver since his last driver, so he began driving himself. It was obnoxious yes but, he had made plans to hire a new driver for his stay in China whom he was going to meet tomorrow. Until then he had to drive himself to and from his hotel and eventually to this new place. The subbasement was dark, save the light of the sun coming from the tunnel ahead. Heihachi felt his head and frowned, he was balding now and it was no surprise the last few years had been some of the most stressful of his life.

He made a conscious effort not to think about that night and what had happened but, every so often it slipped into his dreams, or crept into his thoughts when he heard a child laughing or something of the like. Heihachi, after what had happened, sent Lee to school in America. There he worked in a private internship at the American chapter of the Zaibatsu, where he pursued his career to become a senior of the Zaibatsu, one day. Lee wasn't happy with having to leave and he didn't understand, at the time, anything that had happened but, Heihachi couldn't keep the boy around after what had happened. He did however, wanted to make sure Lee was taken care of, he didn't want to abandon the boy as he had found him, the Zaibatsu was his security and every now and then Heihachi would check up on him and sometimes even visit, even though Heihachi admitted it wasn't as much as he should have.

He still was smart to, all reports indicated that Lee was going to excel in the Zaibatsu like no other person had and he showed a dedication to working at the Zaibatsu, Heihachi took that as a sign that maybe Lee, didn't hate him for shipping him off. The guilt of what he had done to Lee was easier to ignore than the other two.

Kazuya was dead and so was Jinpachi.

Defensively Heihachi blocked out the memory of Kazuya, he knew he had a son and he knew what he did but, his mind didn't cling to it. It was too much to remember all of it was, his heart was still heavy as a boulder over the issue and his mind had to continually justify what he did. The authorities did get involved, they asked questions about Kazuya and what had happened and Heihachi lied. He lied over and over and he did it with a conviction and aplomb he didn't think he had. He told him the boy was playing and fell off the ravine but, that his land was his and the trauma of looking for his body was too much. They accepted that lie, with doubts but, they accepted it. A minor investigation ensued and when it ended Heihachi had to sign a form declaring Kazuya Mishima dead. Even today it still bothered him that he was actually able to sign that form and declare his son was dead, the one thing he cared about more than anything else in the world.

It wasn't until a year or so later that he even thought about what Kazume would have thought. His dead wife, Kazuya's mother, she had never had the chance to touch the boy or love him but, when she was pregnant Heihachi knew that she loved her unborn child more than he could have ever known. Every day he wished she was back with him but, even if she were how could he look her in the eye after what he did. It wasn't merciful, it wasn't understandable but, it was necessary! Why had he been dealt these cards to do these things that no other human being could understand, to face the world with the visage of a hero but, looked at his family with the eyes of a murderer. Day after day Heihachi looked into the faces of men and he smiled or explained things to them and behind his eyes was this terrible secret that he could never actually explain, not just the secret of what he did but, that he hated _himself_ for doing it.

He killed his own father.

He couldn't conceive the actual thought, he had the discussion with Jinrei about doing it but, somewhere in his mind and in his heart he didn't think it would happen. Jinpachi's face still stared at him from within the confines of his mind, eyes piercing, confused and filled with hatred, twisted by that thing within him. Everything about that night was sickening and it wasn't even what he had done but, _how_ he had done it. His inability to understand and go through with his fate caused him to do such horrible, heartless things. The way he tossed Kazuya off the side of the ravine listening to his receding scream, echoing in the still of night.

And Jinpachi, what he had done to Jinpachi was worse, how he made his own father suffer until his slipped slowly into death. Suffocating whatever life that was in him out over such a long time. His life was regret and wrongness, he lived to preserve what his father had given him: the Zaibatsu but, deep in his heart Heihachi resented himself because despite the fact that his son and father were cursed with some ethereal demon he felt _he_ was the worse of the three.

It was so terrible that it made his chest physical squirm in uneasiness, so much so that if he was driving he would have had to pull over and take a moment to collect himself but, more than anything he knew what he had done was necessary.

That concept allowed him to calm, the twisting in his chest became a small motion, he sighed over, what he attempted to convince himself, his balding head, turned the key in the ignition and drove out of the parking lot, into the Chinese sun.

That night he felt, somewhat, better. Heihachi enjoyed being outside, the wind always had calmed him, he spent so much time sitting under the air conditioning in different offices that contrast between real air and the synthetic counterpart was painfully obvious. He could smell trees now, whereas most people walked by them without even realizing they were there, he noticed every last one because he spent so much time away from them and their presence was comforting. The moon was full in the sky and it hovered right above the building he was stalking, like a giant searchlight illuminating his way.

It was ten-thirty in the evening, Heihahchi was cautious about not going too early as to not run into anyone in the building and not too late as to avoid any suspicion, a few cars on the road drove past and he looked eagerly at the fifth floor window.

Admittedly Heihachi hadn't thought about the people trying to kill him seriously, the attacks were heinous but, for some reason they didn't leave him too rattled. Of course he had other things on his mind but, now the weight of the situation was starting to hit him. It was one kind of fear to know that the Yakuza or Triads had it out for you but, it was a totally different kind of fear just knowing _someone_ was trying to kill you but, not knowing who. Getting to the bottom of the situation was now foremost in his mind, if this office had any information on the people responsible for the attacks against him, it would be welcomed relief to know something.

Kai was helpful and more diligent that Heihachi would have expected, this was a case that had gone on for more than a decade and was approaching it's second, it was comforting to know there was some loyalty to virtuosity left in the world. The Japanese weren't complying as much to Heihachi's problems but, they did offer a small amount of concern for losing the richest man in the country and the possibility of destabilizing the most powerful business in the reigon. The truth was the cold war was beginning to take its toll on the region. The Russians were so irritable it was hard to tell what was going to happen next, the Japanese were trying not to step on anyone's toes whilst moving forward with their progressions. The 'space race' was almost behind them but, still threatened the neighboring nations. Huge corporation, like the Zaibatsu, were somewhat exempt from the turmoil as their survival was beneficial to the global economy rather than one country. Still though, the world was changing rapidly and fear of another world war was always on the horizon, no one wanted to be left behind but, everyone was afraid to move forward too quickly and seem threatening. Even so the Zaibatsu was fairly safe, most of the big superpowers in the world respected it and they worked together with them, Heihachi watched the cold war with more of a historian's eye than anything else, it was an interesting time no doubt.

Heihachi began across the street, wearing a large raincoat and bowler hat, he kept his head down to keep his identity hidden from anyone who might be passing by. The coat concealed his bulked up body and the hat covered his distinctive hair. Heihachi counted the cameras focused on the building, the front door was not an option, so quickly he went to the back entrance. The parking lot was empty and it was dark save, one light illuminating the back door. Heihachi approached the door with his head down and grabbed the door knob.

He grunted when he couldn't turn it, it was a hopeful thought that the steel door may have been unlocked but, that wasn't the case. Heihachi sighed, here he was again, committing a crime, breaking and entering, he looked around to make sure no one was around. He was keenly aware of the camera recording his every move right above him, the hat would obscure his face. Heihachi clutched the doorknob, of the fortified metal door, with might and with a quick push from his shoulders the door snapped open like a twig.

Heihachi cleared his throat, a nervous habit of his and entered the door into the building. The inside was of total darkness but, Heihachi came prepared with a flashlight. He pulled the heavy metal flashlight out of his right pocket and illuminated the darkness. Ahead of him were the stairs, to the left of them was the elevator, with haste he hurried up the steps to the fifth floor.

A peculiar thought came across his mind as he rounded the fourth floor: was this was Jinrei did? Heihachi had known Wang for a long time and for that extended amount of time he didn't know _exactly_ what he did for work. He described himself as a merchant and that often times his important work required him to straddle the line of the law. Jinpachi would hire him to find out if potential investors and collaborators were legit or not, within days Jinrei would return with reports and details of their company that nobody probably know but, their board members. Jinrei would just smile his toothy grin and deny doing anything illegal.

Somehow Heihachi imagined Jinrei being more confident than he was now, there was a slight fear inside of him, not of any person but, rather just of knowing what he was doing was wrong, his whole life was turning in that direction though…

The fifth floor was a complete contrast to the first, there were no seats or bulky computers sitting on desk. Instead it was almost completely barren except for a view file cabinets. Heihachi took inventory of the room to make sure but, it was as he was seeing, nothing else was on this floor. He counted seventeen file cabinets in total and without another thought he went to opening them and going through their contents.

When he got to the twelfth cabinet Heihachi was aggravated to find that most of the papers were hand written notes that didn't seem to amount to anything. Heihachi could read that they were a part of a bigger network of information separated for the purpose of keeping the contents of the information. What he did find that seemed to be official were some bills and notices of eviction. The only thing that stood out about those were the astronomical price of the bills, electric bills costing more than anything he had seen before outside of some his own companies cost but, it was possible this was a safe house for a corporation so that information wasn't very revealing. It was in the twelfth cabinet did he find papers stored between the shelves, six in total two were official bank statements with no hints to who it was issued to and the other four were handwritten papers that seemed to coincide with the numbers on the statement.

Heihachi read over the statements carefully, they looked similar to the ones Kai had shown him but, these were much higher payments and from the look of them the money was being carefully hidden but, from who? On the handwritten papers figures were jotted down with letters written next to them. Heihachi couldn't make out what they were trying to say but, he could tell that they were important and that it might be possible to gather some information from them, if it could be decrypted. He pointed his flashlight onto his watch to see he had been detained reading papers for a little over an hour, he wanted to keep these papers but, he had a feeling they would be missed if he did.

Heihachi surmised there had to be a copying machine inside the building somewhere and so he set out to find one. This task fifteen minutes to complete and he began copying the papers, to his dismay the machine was loud and rambunctious, as it copied the papers it seemed to do whatever it could to rock, groan and alert everyone within a few miles that Heihachi was there. Heihachi's nervousness was probably missed place and within a few minutes he had the copies he wanted and had returned the originals back to their hiding place and walked back down to the first floor with the copies tucked into jacket.

Outside Heihachi closed the door back, paying mind not to give any clues to the camera as to who he was and found himself unable to convincingly close the door back the way he had found it. Two of the three hinges popped off and the lock was smashed in. Heihachi frowned at the damage he had done but, continued through the parking lot back, into the street and back to his car.

The next day Heihachi had more, banal, meetings to take care of regarding the reconstruction of Mishima Heavy Industries China. The good news was that the damage was bad but, not something they couldn't be repaired, the bad news was that the JACK program would have to be pushed back even further. Anxiety began to fill Heihachi's mind thinking about what Abel would say about the bad news but, he had to put that out of his mind and focus on the plethora of other problems he had in the Zaibatsu.

As he left an office building he remembered how he had driven there but, how he wouldn't have to drive back. His new driver was going to be waiting for him when he was ready, which was immediately. Heihachi liked most of his drivers and it upset him that so many had been killed and the rest quit, he had to make a conscious effort not to get too attached to them anymore, chances were one way or another they weren't going stay for long. Heihachi knew that was going to be the case in this situation because this driver was only contracted to drive him around during his trip in China, when he returned to Japan he'd be hard-pressed to find another driver. He was beginning to gain a reputation.

Outside Heihachi ran his hand through his hair, the sun was high today, it was a clear spring day, the kind he would like to enjoy in Hon-Maru, sitting on the grass and falling asleep but, instead he was sealed up in this suit driving to another meeting. Despite that he felt the air and was inspired by the spring, his spirits were lifted just being in this day.

He turned a corner and his car was parked their waiting for him, he bid a farewell to the other businessmen he walked with and entered the car on the passenger side in the back. He sighed as he relaxed into the seat and put his briefcase on the floor of the car. He couldn't make out the face of his driver but, he could see he was fairly young looking.

"Did they send you the itinerary? " Heihachi asked, in the rear-view mirror Heihachi could see the young driver nod.

"Yes Mr. Mishima," He spoke. "Do you want to set off right away?" He asked, Heihachi nodded lazily.

"I wish I didn't have to but, yes I would." Heihachi answered; the driver nodded and started the car.

"Alright sir." He answered.

Smoothly the car pulled out of the parking spot and rode down the Chinese road. Heihachi looked out the window and watched the people as he passed them. He was all the way across town from where he had killed Yasurgi and met Lee, it was hard to believe that was almost five years ago, Heihachi still had scars from that encounter, physically and other.

The contents of last night 'raid', as Heihachi deemed it in his mind, were in his coat pocket, there was a chance he'd be able to get into contact with Jinrei today, if it was possible it would be the best person to pass the information onto.

Jinrei took the news of Kazuya and Jinpachi more distressed than Heihachi had thought. The two of them had discussed in the past what would have to happen if Jinpachi became unstable but, the addition of Kazuya seemed to really rattle Jinrei. Heihachi explained in detail what had happened to Kazuya and it shocked Jinrei, both that Kazuya was a part of the problem and how Heihachi had dealt with it. It was his stunned and almost disappointed that inspired Heihachi to lie about what exactly he had done to Jinpachi. Heihachi could tell that Jinrei didn't totally believe Heihachi about what had happened to Jinpachi but, Wang didn't say anything else other than acknowledging that Heihachi was bounded by necessity.

Even so, they weren't as close as they were before. Most likely cause Heihachi reminded Jinrei of Jinpachi and his thinking Jinpachi was dead was a lot to handle. There wasn't much comfort in knowing that he had done the right thing. The fact that he had expelled this 'Devil' creature from the world by killing Kazuya and disposing of Jinpachi was the ultimate success and yet it didn't feel any better than before he had achieved the goal. Something in his heart was still aware that what he did yielded much different results than he-

"Get down!" The young driver yelled suddenly, Heihachi's response time delayed by his heavy thoughts, he only could see a flurry of movement and then the car accelerated sharply. The momentum smashed him onto his seat unable to move from the centrifugal like push. A sudden pop filled his ears, the familiar sound of gunfire in the near distance. Heihachi's mind raced, the car was moving so fast, he couldn't gather his thoughts.

With a hard smack the car hit the base of some scaffolding, a moment later a thud on the hood revealed the would-be assassin as he landed on top of the car, sniper rifle strewn next to him. The young driver was eye to eye with the killer and in a series of moves, the assassin pulled a gun from a holster and pointed it at the window shield at Heihachi, before Heihachi could react, the driver slammed the car into reverse and bolted backwards sliding the killer off the hood violently just as he took the shot, missing Heihachi's chest by a few inches. The young driver spun the wheel and the car, spun sideways just as he slammed the brakes again. Heihachi grabbed a hold of the leather seat as the car spun, seemingly out of control.

The driver, with precision, stopped the car just as the assassin was running towards the driver sear gun in hand, as the assassin got close enough to shoot, the driver slammed the door opened into the man knocking him down. The young man dove out of the car and pursued the assassin as he tried to regain his footing. The two men wrestled on the concrete in the middle of the road for a long moment before the killer got the upper hand and knocked the young man on the ground. Distraught at the sudden turn of events, the killer turned his attention to the young man, who was on one knee, a swift kick would have landed critically on the young man's face but, he was quick in catching the foot and throwing it away.

The assassin's balance faltered as the young driver got to his feet and threw a heavy punch into the killer's chest. Another punch followed but, this time it failed to hit it's mark, the hand was caught and twisted behind his back, the driver tried to move away but, the grip was so strong, the man's foot hit the back of the driver's knee and the young man fell to the ground just as he felt a blunt pain to his side.

Face first the driver hit the ground and in pain he turned over to his back to see the assassin had a small knife in hand and straddled him; his body blocked out the sun and his bloody lip grinned as he brought the knife down into his chest.

The driver braced for the pain, eyes closed but, it never came. Curious about the delay he opened his eyes and in front of him the assassin stood still as if frozen in place. His face twisted into a strange expression he couldn't quite make out as pain or guilt. Almost magically his body lifted off the ground hovering over the driver and in an instant flew a few feet away. The blocked out sun returned and standing over him was Heihachi Mishima who, for a moment, watched the limp body of the failed assassin to see monitor if it was going to move. When it didn't he turned his attention to the driver and extended his hand.

"Are you alright?" The young driver took a moment to take a breath and wiped some dirt off of his left pant leg, afterword he took Heihachi's hand and stood. Heihachi looked in awe at the driver, he couldn't believe how young he was, he couldn't have been more than twenty years old Heihachi deduced.

"Yeah, I'm ok." He spoke after awhile; he looked Heihachi in the eye and Heihachi saw a look of regret in his eyes.

"That was some pretty complicated driver there." Heihachi said gesturing to the car; the young man frowned.

"I'm sorry, when I saw the guy on top of that scaffolding I thought accelerating was the best option since he had a long range weapon." He explained, Heihachi nodded, genuinely impressed by the speed of the boy's action.

"Good thinking," Heihachi acknowledge. "Good for us the car complied." Heihachi stared at the car taking stock of the damage. Following the older man's gaze the young man looked at the car, when he saw the damage to the bumper and how the hood was crushed upwards, he felt his heart fall to his feet.

"Oh God!" He exclaimed. "My first day and I wrecked your car!" He put his face into his hands and sighed loudly muffled by the mask. Heihachi looked at the boy and laughed whole heartedly at the expression.

"I can by two-thousand more of those cars in seven different colors if I wanted to," He boasted. "But my life isn't as easily captured!" He took his hand and gave the young man a friendly smack on the back.

"I'm so sorry!" He continued.

"Nonsense!" Heihachi blurted, "You just save my life, I owe you now." He explained; the boy looked up at him with disbelief in his eyes.

"So you mean you're not going to hold my company responsible for the damage?" He asked; Heihachi laughed again.

"No," Heihachi started. "and I don't think that's the equivalent of saving my life" Heihachi continued; the disbelief melted into confusion.

"I don't think I understand." The boy asked; Heihachi went over to the car and surveyed the damage before turning back to the boy.

"How about lunch?" Heihachi suggested; the boy's mouth dropped in shock. "Not that that evens us out but, it's a good start." Heihachi corrected.

"You don't have to, I'm really just satisfied with-" the boy started.

"Don't be foolish," Heihachi said in a friendly tone but, with a sternness that shot down the boy's spine. "You deserve it." The boy blinked quickly and then nodded.

"Ok…" his voice trailed off, Heihachi smiled. "Don't you have meetings to go to?" he suddenly asked; Heihachi's face stiffened up as he recalled his duties but, within moments he smiled again.

That's the good thing about owning a company," Heihachi started. "I get to decide if I want to go to meetings or not." A police cruiser was coming closer and Heihachi frowned, he could tell Kai the details later, he didn't wish to be detained. "Shall we?" Heihachi asked, gesturing past him. The boy nervously walked by and he passed Heihachi he looked at him.

"What about?" He gestured to the broken car and the comatose man.

"They're not going anywhere, the police will handle it." Heihachi said, the boy nodded and as he walked by Heihachi thought of a question. "By the way, what's your name?" The boy nodded in a slight bow and responded:

"Kazi Sumon"

Heihachi's choice of where to eat for lunch wasn't inspired but, the young driver Kazi, didn't know about his history with Yasurgi at the outdoor restaurant so there was no harm done in Heihachi's mind. It also allowed him to survey his surroundings, the assassin seemed to be working alone, or else they wouldn't be sitting and eating at that moment but, it was a smart choice to watch around, as well as if Kai really needed him he'd be out the open to find, that and of course the food was delicious. Over lunch Heihachi forgot his mental lesson about not getting attached to his drivers and learned all about his young friend.

"So, you're not Asian." Heihachi smiled over a bite of food, Kazi smiled as well and looked away shyly.

His brown skin made it clear he wasn't of the region but, there was something else there, something that some would call exotic in his eyes, Heihachi knew instantly he wasn't just one nationality, his parents must have been of two different regions.

"No, I'm not." Kazi answered. "My father is from Bangladesh and my mother is Italian, I lived in both countries for a while but, mostly Italy." He explained; Heihachi nodded, it made sense, he could see the features in his face.

"You don't look a day older than twenty." Heihachi spoke with a questioning tone, Kazi laughed again.

"It's cause I'm not," He explained. "I'm nineteen." Heihachi gave a look of surprise.

"And already driving around powerful business men in China?" Heihachi asked; Kazi took a sip of his water and nodded.

"Yeah, I've been driving for a while." He confessed. "I used to be a stock car racer" he added, Heihachi smirked.

"That explains the tactical moves before," He said more to himself than Kazi. "But, here you are now, something must have happened." Heihachi surmised, he could see in the boy's face that he had hit on something in particular.

"Yeah, something happened alright," Kazi said, with a slight frown. "But it's a really long story."

Heihachi smiled and sat back in his chair, before loosening his collar with a pull.

"We've got the time." He suggested, Kazi smiled and gave in easier than Heihachi thought he would.

"You asked for it."


	10. Exodus

_A moment's rest is an eternity of loss._

_ And so he did not rest, for as far as his feeble, weak eyes could see there was nothingness. The sky stretched for a vast endlessness but, the earth around him seemed to lay further and was not as peaceful as the blue cloak, punctuated by soft white pillows. However long the trail was it was not going to be anywhere near as treacherous as his first step forward. That was a churn, a slow bloodied churn that seemed to take an eternity to complete. Haunted with the idea of what was ahead and, even worse, what he was leaving behind. With every step it felt like the ground beneath him lurched up and grabbed him foot, pulling him back down. He felt a new respect for gravity as it took mercy upon him, its push was steady but, not forceful but, this pull from the ground was merciless and unending._

_ After time, ( how much exactly was hard to tell) his senses began to come back to him. Unwilling and still clinging onto the hope of death, they ineptly came and went when they pleased. His hearing was the first to serve him again, in the distance he could hear some type of water body. A creek or a river it did not matter it was rushing loud enough to identify, his mind played games trying to understand his disobedient senses and as it did he learned things of himself he didn't know._

_ The first was that he was in deep pain, he knew he was hurt but, it took thought to realize he was in such terrible pain that to sit down and die under the baking sun seemed to be a most prudent choice. No longer was his body broken but, now it was failing, whereas before he sat in the pit of death, ready to slide into the absolute zero now, he sat on the brink, fully aware of his mortal shortcomings and his inevitable passing. And yet he stood walking continuously without faltering._

_ The second was-_

_ "You are dying of thirst." The voice spoke, it didn't surprise him in terms of fear but, it had been quiet these last few days, or was it weeks? Had he slept? No, they had talked…hadn't they?_

_ "I am dying of many things." He answered back, not with a sarcastic observation but, with truth. He was on the thin line between existence and expiration, how was he to know if thirst was going to be the tipper? _

_ "But, your body craves to drink." He understood, the voice knew better than he did, he had learned that. After all it was probably his psyche, talking to himself, using his own mind to keep his mind intact. A clever tactic, it would be interesting if it was followed with success. _

_ He commanded his ears to listen and they ignored and so he commanded again and with the faintest, most obsolete effort his ears searched out the water body he heard in the distance. The process was hard, he could hear it, now he needed his mind to determine where it was, he turned left but, nothing happened, he turned right and the whirring water became louder and so he walked towards it._

_ "No." The voice spoke suddenly in protest, he felt confused again, was he wrong? It felt as if the water was that way, could he be wrong?_

_ "There some kind of water over there," He spoke back in explanation, as if the voice didn't know. Of course it knew, it knew everything._

_ "There is water closer," the voice explained. "Walk ahead for three minutes and then turn."_

_ And he did, he walked, each step labored with the earth sabotaging him and after three minutes, whatever that was in delirium, and he turned left._

_ On the ground there was a man, the sight sent a shot of adrenaline to his heart, something he didn't remember, something that felt so alive to his zombie body that it almost made him vomit. Another person, what did that mean? The man laid face down to the earth as if gripped in a long kiss with the dirt, he wore a backpack and strewn next to him were some pieces of his equipment. A compass, a map, a knife and a flask._

_ "There is water within that man's flask." The voice blew on his ear. "You must drink it." Suddenly he felt perplexed. Something about this didn't seem right, even to his oddly feeling body this felt strange._

_ "Is he dead?" he asked almost instinctively, the words falling out of his mouth, which betrayed him for a drop of water._

_ "Does it matter?"_

_ Did it? He was dying wasn't he? He knelt down to the flask and thought for a moment before picking it up and opening it. It smelt dank, the man had to have been here for some time but, still his fingers quivered at the thought of sending water into his mouth which yelled madly to continue. And he took the flask and he put it to his mouth and the hot water flowed from the bottle into his mouth and down his throat. _

_ His body rejoiced, this was also a new feeling, he felt life suddenly pushed into him. He stood, quicker than he had before and looked beyond the vast earth and continued to walk._


	11. Kazi Sumon

I ran away from home when I was eleven because of my father, he wasn't a terrible man but, he had my life picked out for me and I was afraid of what he had in store. At the time he was a wealthy businessman, he owned two companies, one that made shoes and the other manufactured a special kind of distiller that made fermenting alcohol much faster and more efficient. From a young age he tried to groom me to take over both businesses but, I was interested, going around and barking orders seemed fine but, I wanted to live a little first.

At the time I would have called it liberating myself but, looking back on it I was being stupid. I had no more than a little bit of money in my pocket but, I ran away anyway. It didn't take a long time for me to run out of that money, I began stealing food for a couple of months before I got a series of odd jobs. Taking packages here and there, delivering messages, until eventually I got into working at a mechanics shop, I help keep it clean but, eventually I got to work on the cars and that started everything really.

The man who took me in was a kind man, he reminded me of my mother's brother, I took to him his name was Peter Stiggaliani, every one called him 'Guy' though.

"Kazi," Guy called to me one day while I was fixing one of his cars. "How come you're always here?" He asked me, I felt embarrassed, I didn't have anywhere to go, Guy was paying me a good amount of money to work for him, he knew that I was homeless but, we had never really talked about it. I was going on twelve so, it must have been odd having me work there. At night I would sleep in one of the cars, Peter would always come in early with breakfast. He would pretend he woke too early to go to work but, I knew he was coming in because he knew I was there. I know, it sounds odd, why didn't he just take me in? Or find someone who could? I don't know for sure but, I figured it's because he knew I ran away and I didn't want to be found and my father was relentless, the moment I moved into a house someone would know and he would come find me. In the long run it worked out but, I remember crying at night in the cars. I didn't want to live like this but, even then, I was too proud to go back. Anyway…

"I need the money" I answered him back, I had oil all over me, I wasn't the best working on the cars but, I was the messiest, the other guys would tease me about it but, I liked the oil, I had gotten used to it. It made me feel a part of the work I was doing despite the fact that sometimes it wasn't the best.

Guy had a soft-spot for me, he wanted me to work somewhere else because he didn't really think his shop was the best place but, I always dreaded the day he would ask me to leave.

"You're not going to make any money like this." He told me; I stood up and I could feel I was about to cry. "Don't look at me that way" He demanded of me but, I couldn't help it, Guy was the only person I felt like I could trust.

"I don't want to leave." I told him but, he only smiled and hugged me and gripped my arms.

"You don't have to leave but, I think you should look into this new job, it pays more and there will be more boys your age there." Guy suggested, I knew that was important. My being, clearly, not Italian caused a couple of issues for me. Most of the people I worked for were very open about their prejudice against me. Most assumed I was from the middle east like Pakistan or Saudi Arabia, they didn't know much to tell the difference between the way people from those regions look in comparison to each other and to me. The other fear was that I was a practicing Muslim, I was too young to do anything but, the fear was still there And in all fairness I was interested in Islam but, I was too preoccupied with trying to eat, anyway…

Guy handed me a poster that talked about stock car races in a raceway not too far from the shop, in face some of the car's owners were listed on the flyer as racers.

"They're hiring a few good boys to help out with maintenance and some janitorial work at the raceway," Guy explained. "Now, I know some of the guys down at the track and I may be able to give a good word for you if you're interested." Guy went on.

At the time I didn't know a lot about stock car racing but, I knew all the boys my age were into it and congregated at the racetracks to watch the races, I also knew my father was so detached from reality that he'd never know what the kids were into, so going there would keep him away from me effectively. I took Guy's offer and the next day he bought me a nice suit and we went down to the racetrack together.

I was surprised to see how many kids showed up, there had to be over two-hundred boys there with their fathers and there was Guy and myself, as mixed matched as could be. It was about ninety degrees outside, no one else had a suit on and I was so…_brown_ compared to the rest of them. I stuck out like a sore thumb but, guy stood right next to me without flinching the whole time. The other boys watched me cautiously and the other fathers watched Guy as if he had brought in some type of defective to the racetrack or worse a girl!

That's the way it was back then though, things have cleared up a lot more in terms of racism and sexism but, I was there then so I had to make due.

I wasn't aware there were going to be try-outs that day, they would take about twenty boys at a time and line them up with cars rigged with issues and they had five minutes to diagnose the problem, the two boys to diagnose the most problems the quickest moved on as well as some personal question and physical test. I was never very big but, I wasn't tiny either but, a lot of the other boys looked like wrestlers and boxers so I didn't think I stood a chance. To my luck though very few of them knew anything, of any real substance, about cars, the diagnosis were more than easy for me, common problems I saw in the shop every day.

The interview was the hardest part but, the interviewer was kind to me, my age seemed to be the biggest problem, they kept suggesting that I looked too young to be of the legal age to work there. I was ready to give up at that point but, apparently Guy wasn't he told them I was Fifteen and could produce documents proving it. They didn't seem to really buy it but, they were nice enough to hire me on the provisional basis that I provide those papers.

Naturally I thought it was over but, Guy was so excited about everything. He told me he was going to have papers drawn up and then made me swear that I wouldn't tell anyone and that I would never lie the way he did to anyone and I agreed.

I started working at the track about a week later with three other boys, at first it was odd but, after a little while they took to me and I to them. Guy came everyday and brought me lunch and dinner, I slept in cars still but, I had money in my pocket and often times I would sleep over my new friends' houses.

They were a rowdy bunch, they were all sixteen so, they were interested in the new music, the racers and of course sex. I wasn't exactly at that level yet but, I listened to them and they took care of me like I was there little brother. They also got over their jealousy and respected me for my work on the cars, I taught them things here and there and it made their jobs easier. Eventually the racers took to us too, the youngest of the racer's was only eighteen, his name was Francesco.

Francesco was a great racer but, was more famous for his looks. He was a beautiful young man, when he raced women came to the racetrack to catch a glimpse of him. He was the closest of anyone I knew to look like me. His skin was light brown, like an olive. His parents were Italian but, his somewhere down the line he had some French Algerian ties. His eyes were dark green, tall, wavy black hair that came down to his shoulders. I remember him like it as yesterday because even the boys I worked with commented on his looks. They complained about wanting to look like him so they could woo the pretty girl in town or convince one of the others mother's to feed them whenever they wanted.

Francesco and I were friends and I was also friends with his father James, they looked after me and became good friends with Guy, all together they became a lot like a new family. Francesco like my older brother with James and Guy like my two fathers!

Eventually the other boys and I were allowed to close up the track at night, which wasn't the best idea because within weeks of getting the promotion the other boys were driving the cars around the track for an hour or two, pretending to be Francesco and saying lewd things to imaginary women. They teased me for never getting into a car and called me a baby and for a couple of weeks I didn't let it bother me but, peer pressure got to me and I eventually got into a car. I didn't do it because I wanted to, I did it because I felt like I had to, so it was my shock when I got into the car and it smelled like Francesco! I didn't want to drive any car but, I really didn't want to drive his car, the other boys rationalized that they were old enough to drive anyway so it was good practice but, they didn't know I was younger than them.

But I was already in the car and the only thing worse than not racing at all would have been to have gotten in the car and then jump out. I started the car and the engine scared me, it was much louder being inside the car than outside and before I knew it I was driving. I went around the track four or five times, screaming manically at the top of my lungs. I will admit it felt good, the combination of fear and achievement, I felt like I was invincible but, that changed quickly when I tried to stop. The brakes weren't working at capacity, they slowed the car down but, not quick enough, I had to keep going around the track to prevent crashing into the wall and _then_ the brakes gave out. The car was still in control but, I had no way of slowing down, other than releasing the accelerator to keep my turns safe. I knew it wouldn't work for long to keep driving and that I had to try to stop the car somehow if I wanted to get out alive, so I took the chance and fishtailed the car, slamming on the brakes. The car spun about one-hundred ninety degrees and the back of the car hit the wall. I ended up cutting the very top of my forehead but, I was alright.

When I got out of the car none of the boys were at the car to meet me but, James was. Immediately he scolded me for driving the car, then asked if I was ok. I told him I hurt my head to which he replied 'Good', the pain would serve as a reminder to not do it again but, then he asked me where I had learned to drive that way, I said:

"I didn't drive, I crashed." He smirked at me.

"You saved your own life," he answered. "That fishtail was a risky move but, you made it work."

"I wrecked your car." I responded.

"It was already flawed," James answered. "I decided to park it at the track to have it repaired for brake problems. I'll talk to Guy, after he learns what you did to it I'm sure he'll compensate me with a overhaul." James continued.

"I'm going to be in so much trouble." I pouted.

"Yes, you and your friends," He turned to the other boys who were still at the starting point fifty feet away, they ducked down when James' gaze turned to them. "But, I think you ought to know, what you did on this track was nothing short of amazing, I want you to come home with me and meet with Francesco tonight." James commanded.

"For what?" I asked but, James only gave me a stern look and sent me on my way to pick up my things and get ready to leave.

The next day I started training to be an official stock car racer, James told Francesco about my maneuver and he agreed to show me the ropes in actual driving and not crashing. The other boys were more shocked than I was and Guy was more shocked than they were but, it fit into my schedule and I had the chance of being sponsored and making more money if I entered races.

I didn't think much of it at first but, spending time with Francesco was enlightening. He told me that I was a natural and couldn't believe how fast I was picking up racing. Within a year he deemed that I was totally ready to enter high stakes tournaments. So he retired at nineteen and got married to a beautiful woman and passed his car onto me.

In fact in my first race I was sponsored by James and Francesco, I lost but, I came in third which was the youngest person to place third in their first race. Everyone was proud of me and my friends began to idolize me a bit. Guy eventually told James the truth about my age and the two kept the secret and went to great lengths to keep my secret.

Well eventually I began to do very well, they called me a prodigy and all this nonsense. I began winning races quite frequently, this caught the eye of some major sponsors. By the time I turned fourteen in reality and eighteen in my lie I was the most successful stock car racer in the region. I was making more money than I could spend and I, finally, got myself a little flat near Guy.

Unfortunately that's when it all started to fall apart, apparently my winning caught the eye of some not-so-friendly people. After I won an international race on the behalf of Italy, I started receiving threats, Guy and James told me not to think about it but, I could tell it was bothering them. Apparently some people weren't happy with a Middle Eastern looking kid representing la partia Italia, I didn't find all of this out until it was too late but, the mob had a racer who was beaten out of the position for Italy's racer by me, subsequently they lost a lot of potential money.

When I went to participate in my next race, I found my car wrecked and spray-painted with the words "Go Home Arab" over the side, my friends said they didn't see who did it but, I knew they had. The look in their eyes, I'd never seen them so terrified before, I was so mad though. I said things to them I regret now, they were just protecting themselves.

I rushed back to Guy to tell him what had happened but, when I got back to the shop it was wrecked. It didn't take long until I found him, dead in his office. On his desk there was a hand written note that once again suggested I'd "Go Home". I was so scared, I wasn't sure what to do but, I called Francesco and told him what happened and he raced over. He picked me up and I cried the entire trip, he took me to James' house.

We sat there with Francesco's wife and mother and discussed what we would do. I suggested that I had to leave Italy but, they forbade it, they all insisted there were ways around the Mafia and they would pursue every possible angle.

I didn't believe them, I knew that I was putting them all in danger and I was still in shock over Guy's murder. I knew they would go after James and the family next, so I ran away, again. I took Francesco's car and I sat in it for an hour deciding if I should leave Italy or actually go home to my real father and seek out his help. If there was one thing he was good at, it was intimidation. But sitting in the car I knew I couldn't risk hurting James or Francesco. So I turned the car on and I drove back to Guy's shop picked up all my forged papers and then out of town and out of Italy. I drove to France and outside of the country I crashed the car into a ditch in an effort to fake my own death. I spent a little time in France, where I did more odd jobs, some I'm not very proud of. I stayed in France for about 6 months and made enough money to fly to Romania, where I did the same thing for a few months and made more money, I didn't last long there but, when I found myself in Syria I got my first driving job for popular politician. Word got around I was loyal and cheap and I've been driving people that way for the last couple of years.

I never could find any country I was comfortable being in, even in the Middle Eastern states I found myself feeling strange, not to mention that by the time I got to them I had given up on Islam totally, I wasn't a good Muslim and I was too conformed by Italy to really be of much use. I often found myself running from people in those countries but, on the opposite end of that, those Middle Eastern countries is where I got the majority of my contacts. I didn't ever fly out of those countries, instead I gradually moved over from country to country and eventually I ended up here in China.

"That's an interesting story" Heihachi smiled and nodded when Kazi finished his story. Kazi shrugged and wiped his mouth with a napkin.

"It's not that amazing." He modestly admitted.

"I suppose in all those years driving people around you've learned a few tricks." Heihachi surmised.

"Yeah, here and there," Kazi admitted. "I can hold my own."

Heihachi thought for a moment, he was liking this young man and he seemed trustworthy at the very worst when He returned to Japan he'd never see the kid again and if he ran off, how hard would it be to find a Bangladeshi/Italian kid wandering around China?

"I'll be honest with you," Heihachi began. "Someone's been trying to kill me for a couple of years and just last night I obtained some bank statements for a phony company that has been funding the assassins."

"Ok." Kazi sat up interested.

"If I could make a connection to these bank statements and one person, I could narrow down who the culprit is." Heihachi explained.

"But, you can't make any sense of the bank statements?" Kazi asked.

"Exactly." Heihachi agreed. "I've seen a lot of these kinds of statements but, I've never seen anything as hectic as these." He reached into his coat and picked out the papers and handed them to Kazi, who looked over them briefly.

"When I was in Paris I used to falsify bank statements for politicians who patronized a brothel and my time in Saudi Arabia was filled with this type of work," Kazi cleared his throat. "Can I take these home and if I see anything interesting I'll let you know?" Kazi asked, Heihachi nodded, he felt silly for trusting this boy so much but…

"Sure, I'm in China for a week and you're my driver so I'll be seeing you every day," it was a bit of a threat but, Kazi laughed it off, it made sense for Heihachi to not completely trust him.

"Great," He smiled at Heihachi. "Well do you want to go to your meetings?" Kazi asked; Heihachi shook his head and stood up.

"No," Heihachi answered. "Have the day off, take some time to calm yourself after this treacherous day, I'll see you in the morning." Heihachi ordered; Kazi smiled.

"I can't thank you enough, Mr. Mishima." Kazi looked down shyly.

"You already have." And with that Heihachi paid his waiter in a small stack of bills and left.

The next day Heihachi was happy to see Kazi hadn't fled with the bank statements and was picking him up from his hotel. Inside the car they greeted each other and Kazi was dressed in a uniform.

"I wasn't aware you had to wear those kind of uniforms for this job," Heihachi said. "You weren't wearing it yesterday."

"I know," Kazi looked into the rearview mirror when speaking to Heihachi. "It's because I literally got hired at that agency an hour before I had to pick you up. I wasn't very ready."

"Oh well, I guess that makes our meeting more fateful." Heihachi laughed.

"Oh that reminds me," Kazi opened the glove compartment and pulled out the papers Heihachi had given to him and passed them back to Heihachi. "I looked over those papers and I have to say they're pretty clever."

"How so?" Heihachi asked.

"Well, the figures are all made up, first of all," Kazi started. "You can by their frequency but, that's not the big point. They're all payments from banks to one person as something like a loan."

"Any idea who?" Heihachi asked; Kazi nodded as he turned a corner.

"Yes," Kazi stated. "There's an old trick used when banks are illegally giving money to one person for unapproved loans. To keep the payments from looking like a pay off to a person they create a fake network, to which they send the money to and then it's dispersed to the other branches but, really it goes to some guy in the shadows. Some banks do more than one of these, especially if they're put under pressure and to make sure they keep up with who gets what they inject the initials of the person they're working for into the reports." Kazi cleared his throat. "you'll see I've highlighted every time the letters T and H are used next to one another in the reports," He paused as Heihachi looked through the papers. "Sixty-Five times."

"So you're saying whoever is behind this, their initials are probably T and H?" Heihachi asked, Kazi nodded.

"It's more than likely," Kazi started. "Who do you know with those initials?" Kazi asked. Heihachi thought for a long moment.

"I don't know," Heihachi admitted. "I'm sure I've met more than a dozen people with those initials." Heihachi suggested.

"It'd be probably best to look into archives of people you've worked with." Kazi suggested and Heihachi smiled.

"Hold that thought." He spoke before he picked up the car phone and dialed. "Yes, it's Heihachi Mishima, that plan I talked to you about earlier, I'd like to execute it," a pause and the sound of the streets came in and left just as quickly. "Yes, I'm sure. Good, the funds will be in your account shortly." Heihachi rung off.

"I don't suppose you laid anyone off who would be this angry?" Kazi asked.

"No but, you're discovery is better than anything we've gotten in the last fifteen years." Heihachi boasted. Kazi smirked in the rearview mirror.

"Well, it doesn't hurt that I used to do these things." He shyly admitted; in the rear view mirror he could see Heihachi handing him something, he took it. "More statements?" he asked.

"Not quite" Heihachi answered; the cryptic quality of Heihachi's answer implied that he wanted Kazi to look at them now, which he did.

"What's this?" He asked dumbfounded.

"A one way ticket to Japan," Heihachi smiled.

"I don't understand…" Kazi went on.

"I'd like for you come work for me." Heihachi suggested; Kazi cleared his throat.

"But, what about-"

"Your current job?" Heihachi asked. "That was them on phone, I'm paying them to let you go." Heihachi answered.

"I don't know what to say." Kazi gulped; Heihachi laughed in a strong bellow, he quieted when he heard himself, he sounded like his father.

"Say yes." Heihachi suggested; Kazi turned right at another corner.

"Yes."


	12. Revelations

_Power is everything._

_ His stride lead him to somewhere new, this place was surrounded by trees and the animals that stalked within them. His path was clear however, barren of any force of nature that would bring him closer to death. His body no longer desired that gift, he was stronger now, only a few days before he thought of slipping away but, now he felt his body retaliate against those thoughts. His senses obeyed him and his strength returned, slowly but, it did return._

_ He was still wounded and healing was not something that was happening as quick as everything else. He walked with a degree of confidence even though he bore the mark of his disaster on his chest, blood poured from it initially, then it streamed, then it trickled and now it dripped. It still caused pain, every time the wind blew on it a harsh sting whipped through his body, threatening to cripple him into the thing he was before but, it never did. It never pushed him to his knee, he stood and grit his teeth but, continued to stand._

_ The question of where he was going was no longer important, it didn't matter where he was going, he knew where he was coming from and leaving and THAT was all that mattered, There was always something ahead and eventually he would walk upon it and then it would all make more sense but, until then his only focus was to keep going forward, deviation was not a true option, just an illusion the trees created. In them was nothing and nothingness and he would not be trapped to going nowhere, when nowhere was not his destination._

_ That being said, he wasn't all powerful, his body was growing stronger but, it would not remain that way. Already he was feeling the setbacks of an inevitable problem, his mind lauded in its new understanding of life but, his body shook him into remembering his ultimate and absolute mortality. And he could not ignore it or he would be a victim of it. His true enemy lay in the fact that he had not achieved ultimate power but, he knew it and his battle was clear. _

_ "You are dying of hunger." The voice spoke, he nodded it was true and he knew the truth._

_ "I must eat or my body will fail." He explained. "There are animals in that forest, fruit on its trees." He spoke but, the voice was swirling like a ghost on the wind, he could sense it before it began now._

_ "No," it spoke. "Those trees bear no fruit for you." He looked at them, in their heights they bore some fruit, he couldn't tell what but, his starving stomach knew no preference._

_ "If I could climb-"_

_ "How will you climb when your body is broken?" the voice asked, a moment of silence passed between them. Was he broken, he felt better than before but, yet still there was something deep inside of him that felt unable._

_ "You must take the fruit from one that has fallen." He looked around but, saw none that fit the criteria._

_ "Does one exist?" he asked, the wind caressed his left cheek._

_ "Yes," the voice began. "There was a storm that passed through here, a tree is fallen only a few yard away, its fruits are intact, you shall eat from it." The voice commanded and so he followed, and continued walking._

_ And it spoke the truth no more than a few yards away there was a tree that had been charred by a lightning bolt and fell over. Its fruit lay on the ground under it, charred and slightly spoiled, mold climbing on them subtly._

_ "These fruits are bitter." He spoke._

_ "But they are accessible," the voice rose up. "and they will extinguish the hungry in your stomach." He thought about the words, they seemed contrary to the sight before him but, the voice had never lied and seemed to know no fallacy._

_ So he knelt and took a fruit, its smell was sweet and awful, the smell of a dying great thing but, he didn't think twice anymore. He took one bite and in minutes had devoured them all._

_ When he was done, he sat by the tree, there was silence but, he knew the voice was present with him. Something possessed him to speak but, he held back._

_ "Go on."The voice prodded; he felt embarrassed, he was trying to hide things that were not able to be hidden from something that could have not existed. He blushed in his ignorance._

_ "Who are you?" he asked._

_ The wind picked up, slowly but, before long like a violent storm, a dark cloud collected over his head and a bolt of lightning struck down near him, flames engulfed the tree and he jump back in fear. The flames parted and the voice spoke but, it was all things he could not understand. The flames raged but, seemed to look at him directly and he shook with all the fear he thought he had lost. They grew and grew and grew, it took the body of a hellish disaster, the boy felt tears fall down his eyes and then- _


	13. 7 to 6 Years Before Tekken I

_The Warrior, powerful by might, does not dwell like the other fiends. Because of his might and thirst for war and battle without thought of consequence he is dangerous with a fearful recklessness that cannot be quenched. The right hand of the highest tower, they served together to conquer and control all that they could see but, over time the Leader began to distrust his warrior. When control was within their grasp the warrior was unsatisfied by their victory, he wished for a bigger battle, so that he may have dominion over more of his enemies._

_ The Leader warned him, his lust for battle was admirable but, would lead to their destruction, if he insisted on fighting where ruling was concerned there would be total destruction and nothing to rule over. The Warrior cared not for his words but, he also did not wish for a world of void battles, where nothingness cusped the edges of his battlefield, this dilemma kept him in check for many years but, his boredom began to grow and grow as the Leader seemed content with waiting for his time to rule._

_ The Warrior thought to conspire against the Leader, he was not of much thought but, he knew there was someone that could possibly appease his thirst for more battle. So he left the leader's side to seek out the help of one with power to create an endless battlefield that would burn with fire for longer than eternity. Deep within the depths of a tomb long forgotten he stood fearless, shield in hand ready for a battle to prove his worth, inside the darkest, furthest chamber he found his inquiry, he stood straight and powerful in the face of the beast and demanded audience with it._

_ The Rectifier granted this wish but, warned the warrior that his master, the Leader, would discover his plot if he continued on. The Warrior expressed that he did not care if the Leader found out, he needed a world that could fight endlessly. The Rectifier asked why he wanted such a world, the warrior was already the most valiant, everyone knew this, what good would a world of lesser warriors do for him if he was guaranteed success? _

_ The Warrior pondered the question in silence and then suggested that a world with more powerful warriors be created, ones that would challenge him and give him more power to conquer over. The Rectifier expressed his willingness to oblige, that he was ready to cleanse their current world and start anew but, the Leader would not allow it, until his victory was absolute he would block a new world from coming about but, if he was defeated he would want to start anew and the world they desired would be created._

_ The Rectifier then sent the Warrior back to his post to usurp the Leader forcing him to comply with the conditions of a new world, so that he may have his endless battlefield and the Rectifier could do his ultimate duty and destroy this world and create a new one. Elated with the chance to achieve his goal the Warrior walked out of the tomb to complete his task, unaware that the Rectifier only wished to destroy this world and all others that would come after._

_ The Leader knew of the Warrior's deception and when he came to him the Leader asked where he had been. The Warrior lied and told the Leader he was fighting battles in far off lands and needed him to preside over the land for dominion. The Leader complied, fully aware of his minion's deception and went to the deep tomb. When they arrived the Warrior announced his plans to usurp the Leader to start a world anew but, the Leader just laughed. He asked the Rectifier what his sole function for being was and the Rectifier confirmed it was to rectify. The Leader then asked what criteria for rectification was and the rectifier explained that it was when the world faced a malefactor which could not be stopped, then he would have to rectify that malefactor and if it defeated him, the world. And thus the Leader responded by suggesting that since the Warrior was insatiable in his need to fight and plotted to usurp the world's leaser that the Warrior himself had become a hopeless malefactor in the world._

_ The Rectifier thought for a moment and confirmed the criteria was valid and sound and so in a flash of light the Rectifier stood before the Warrior as an enemy. Shocked by the turn of events the Warrior attempted to fight the Rectifier but, his power was useless against judgment and the Rectifier put the Warrior into a sleep that would last for eternities._

_ The Leader was not satisfied with the results he insisted that he would need the Warrior at some point to police his new world order. The Rectifier agreed and in an effort for appeasement the Leader created a pendant that would hold a seal for the Warriors sleep and when he needed him the Leader would use the pendant to awaken the Warrior and he would be bounded by the power of the pendant to obey his commands._

_ The Rectifier agreed and the pendant was created and held but, then the leader turned to the Rectifier and asked if he thought his own power was a hopeless Malefactor, the ability to seal other fiends and cleanse worlds, it seemed the Rectifier had a monopoly in power, if he wanted he could Rectify the world, wait for one new and instantly Rectify that one. Bound by duty to keep his purpose the Rectifier thought of his power and judged that the Leader was, in fact, right. _

_ The Rectifier snarled at the Leader's confident smirk and asked what he wished to happen. The Leader suggested the Rectifier be sealed in slumber too but, the Rectifier disagreed, saying doing that would give the Leader dominion over him and then the Leader would be a hopeless malefactor. _

_ The Leader agreed but, suggested that the sealed power of the Rectifier not be left to the Leader, he suggested it be provisional._

_ The Leader spoke: "When the clash of two evil stars will shake the world when they come into contact, and inevitably, the two will unite the sealed ancient evil and you shall destroy the world."_

_ The Rectifier thought and asked who the two evil stars would be. The Leader suggested himself and the Warrior, arguing that there were warriors capable of defeating of him in the world, when that happened his control of the Warrior would be broken and the two would come to blows and in that event the world would face a madness like no other and the Rectifier would be released._

_ The Rectifier agreed, angrily he spat foul words at the Leader for his deception and vowed that he had sealed his fate, that the world would become that which he had just forecast and he would rise again. The Leader only smiled and suggested the seal on the Rectifier be that of some grandness and suggested pillars of ice with no sense of cold and then he walked out of the tomb. On the outside he watched as the tomb was wrecked with ice pillars and spears until the commotion stopped. The Leader flew back to his perch were he watched the world but, to his surprise another fiend stood there waiting for him. The Leader sneered at her presence._

_ The Redeemer-_

Heihachi frowned at the missing page. It took him all these years but he had gone back to reading the, already translated, portions of _The Five Towers_, he wasn't aware there were missing pages and the nature of the book was confusing. He had deduced that the 'Leader' was Devil but, the others were a mystery to him. This was his second time he read this passage, he did so because a pendant had come to his attention in the last month. Apparently a Museum had unearthed a pendant that they couldn't date, the problem was that they unearthed the pendant on a native American tribe's land and now there was a legal battle over who owned the pendant. The tribe claimed to have known about the pendant and buried it to keep it from being found but, now that it was found again, they wished to take it back and get rid of it.

Heihachi wasn't one for superstition but, this was a strange coincidence, the tribe were acting very suspicious about the pendant, they insisted it couldn't be released into any one others care but, denied that it was some sort of heirloom of the tribe.

The picture of it in the newspaper was striking, it looked just like one of the drawings in one of the books he had read. Despite being through with the Devil gene and all the problems it came with Heihachi still felt taken by discovering all he could about the beings written about in the books he read. Everything was more complicated now, the Zaibatsu was finally beginning to find it's stride in Heavy Industries and the more he worked the more things had to be done. the _Five Towers_ mostly laid dormant, in the years he had it he had only read a few passages, despite his wanting to know more it felt as if his business life was the only pressing matter left.

The work was stressful but, the concept was relieving. This life was all money, a powerful assets but a minute one as well, there wasn't much that was so grave in seriousness that he had to fear. The only matter was still the idea of who was trying to assassinate him but, even that had died down over time.

Kazi had worked out to his favor, the young man was smart and determined but, most of all loyal. In fact Kazi had become Heihachi primary weapon against Abel's rants, the young man had a way of defusing the arguments before they started. Now people had to go through him to see Heihachi, which greatly reduced the amount of complaints Heihachi received a day. Kazi also kept Heihachi in line. Heihachi's busy schedule was often too complicated to honor, Kazi was able to pick and choose what exactly Heihachi should do and when to be most effective. Heihachi enjoyed his company too, Kazi was the best addition to the Zaibatsu in a while.

"Kazi," Heihachi called; the young man turned from a bookshelf and turned to Heihachi. He wore glasses some of the time but, much like Heihachi the criteria for the glasses seemed to be random. "This book is missing a page." Heihachi explained.

"Is it?" Kazi asked, taking off the glasses slowly and frowning. "I guess at that age some wear and tear is only natural." Kazi explained.

"Maybe but, it cuts off at an important section." Heihachi went on. "I wonder if the page was scavenged."

"I could put out a message to various Museums around the world, maybe it was found and put on display?" Kazi suggested, Heihachi nodded and massaged the bridge of his nose.

"Exactly what I was thinking," Heihachi agreed. "Thanks." Kazi nodded and instinctively looked at his watch.

"Oh boy, it's time to go," Kazi spoke up. "Abel is expecting us at H.I. in thirty-minutes." Heihachi looked at the mounted clock and then sighed loudly.

"Can we make it?" Heihachi asked looking at the young man; Kazi smiled.

"I can get you there in fifteen."

In the car Heihachi read through a series of reports without much interest; Kazi talked from the drivers seat. Another thing Heihachi liked about the young man, he talked with purpose and deliberately free of 'ums' and pauses to think.

"Essentially Abel says this is the last time they'll be testing it," Kazi looked into the rear view mirror to meet Heihachi's reflected gaze. "He says this last rendering is as close to a complete working model as we're going to get." Kazi continued. Heihachi didn't look up from the papers he was reading and grumbled.

"We've heard that one before." The car made a smooth turn.

"Yes, I know but," He scratched his head. "Abel did seem excited about this when I talked to him last and a few of the workers seemed equally excited." Kazi explained.

"Well good," Heihachi looked up and out the window. "I've been pouring money into this program for years now. It'd be nice to know that it was finally returning some progress." Heihachi gruffly explained.

"Think of what will come of it when it is complete though." Kazi began. "You could possibly end the need for causalities of law enforcement. Cops could be investigators, the streets would be cleaned of criminality." Kazi explained.

"I know but," Heihachi straightened his tie. "I don't want this to become abused. Our biggest enemies are in the government. The last thing I want to do is hand over an army to them." Heihachi explained.

"No event of significance comes without risk." Kazi explained; Heihachi nodded solemnly.

"I know but, we'll have to be extra careful." Heihachi concluded.

When they arrived a crowd had gathered, they all were workers; Kazi moaned quietly as he pulled up into a parking space and began to position the car.

"What is going on?" he muttered looking out the window at the crowd and paused momentarily before shutting the car off.

"Whatever it is, it must be interesting," Heihachi said before pulling himself out of the car. Kazi rolled down the driver's window and called to Heihachi as he came around.

"You want me to stay here?" He asked; decisively Heihachi shook his head and waved Kazi over.

"No, come inside," Heihachi suggested. "Who knows what kind of mood Abel is in.".

Kazi nodded and returned the window back and exited the car. The two had no problem parting the crowd, as Heihachi drew nearer the men dispersed out of his way. Inside Heihachi could hear Abel barking off orders to other men but, he was obscured by a larger group of workers. The last time a crowd had gathered this way, there was nearly a riot and mutiny against Abel; however this time seemed different, the men seemed to be excited with awe and pleasure, not anger and spite.

The closer the two men got to Abel's voice the harder it was to penetrate the crowd, the men stopped looking over their shoulders to see who was trying to move them out their way, Heihachi tried to look over the men's head but, couldn't see anything more than more men gawking. From the crowd Heihachi heard Abel bark.

"Heihachi!," He yelled over the crowd. "Move you barbaric fools, let them pass!" Abel began moving men out of the way. Heihachi and Kazi eventually made it to the front of the crowd and saw what it was everyone was watching. Abel moved in front of them and squinted at Kazi as if he didn't recognize him; he always did this Kazi was convinced it was Abel's way of disrespecting him. Eventually, after deducing who Kazi was he turned to Heihachi.

"It's about time you made it," Abel scoffed; he turned away from the Mishima and gestured for them to follow. Heihachi did and standing in front of him was a six foot tall machine. It's eyes swiveled momentarily and focused on Heihachi.

"My goodness," Heihachi gawked momentarily; he looked the machine up and down before turning back to Abel.

"Its operational systems are working better than our originally projections."

Standing there was the robot, different than the one he had seen years ago. It was still a skeleton but, more bulky, it stood on its own and occasionally looked about, gawking at the men who gawked at it. It's eyes were a mechanical replication of a human beings but, it had no face so it looked as if it's eyes were bulging. The eyes smoothly rotated, strangely looking around the room. The chest was semi-armored but, one could still see inside, at the working portions that twisted and pumped every second. The legs were bare, just two metal sticks that lead to metallic feet. the joints at the hip were spherical, like a child's toy and the knee joints were flat and rotated slightly as the thing stood there.

"Abel, this is remarkable" Heihachi fawned at the machine; Abel smiled slightly and walked behind the machine.

", shake Mr. Mishima's hand" Abel spoke, and as if possessed with some spirit the machine looked about and quickly scanned the room before, centering on Heihachi then extended it's metal arm and opened it's hand at Heihachi. Instinctively Heihachi placed his hand inside the hand and the two shook briefly before letting go.

"Vocal recognition?" Heihachi asked; Abel shook his head.

"Complete structural recognition; we've inputted a complex system that allows the machine to recognize structures and heat signatures. It then inputs the information into it's databanks and can recall the information within seconds. We compiled information on all the workers at Heavy Industries, including you and inputted it in the databank. It knows who each and everyone of these men." For a moment longer Heihachi marveled at the mechanical beast and couldn't resist a smile creeping onto his face, like a snake unable to resist the cool or warmth of a smooth stone.

"This is quite remarkable." Heihachi spoke, still somewhat wide-eyed. "When can we expect to mass produce it?" He asked turning to the old scientist but, to his dismay the older man's face had melted into a state of belligerence and disapproval.

"Six, seven years at best!" Abel snapped, he turned away and walked behind the metal behemoth, quietly whirring to itself, and adjusted something not in his line a sight. Before Heihachi could inquire further Kazi did.

"Why so long?" Kazi frustrated asked. "You said this was perfectly working." Kazi reminded. Normally the scientist brushed off Kazi's comments, unable or unwilling to commit to an argument with the young man but, today turned to him with a fury in his eyes that gripped the olive coloured young man tight.

"Because I have deemed it so," Abel hissed. His face softened only slightly. "This model is acceptable for this stage but, not ready to be unveiled for the purposes you wish them for." Abel turned his face from Kazi a long moment after finishing his words.

"Six or seven years is too long Abel" Heihachi bellowed but, the old scientist didn't budge in his belligerent state.

"Then hire someone else" He called from behind the machine. "You put this project in my hands and I intend to complete it, not some half hearted attempt." Abel snapped.

"Need I remind you that, we are facing the possibility of some other persons completing this project." Heihachi called. Abel returned into sight and adjusted his glasses.

"They won't have the same level of success as I will. The modifications I have made to your scientist's, rather uninspired designs will make the Zaibatsu's version superior. No country would willingly purchase any other version of it." Abel confidently boast but, had not convinced Heihachi or his young driver and yet still, it was no matter to him. He hadn't wished to convince them, he surmised if the either of them had issues with the timeline of his success then it would most assuredly be _their_ problem (especially the younger one) and not his. Heihachi sighed and for a moment let defeat come over him before making one last attempt.

"Be reasonable Abel," Heihachi suggested and the old scientist stopped in his walking as if struck by an arrow in his back. For a moment he seemed to think.

"In seven years," The scientist began quietly but, loud enough for Heihachi and Kazi to hear. "You will have all that you have dreamed." For a moment the three men stood in silence and in an agreement made apparently in silence, the scientist walked off.

The crowd of men dispersed but, Heihachi and Kazi stayed a while looking at the machine.

"In seven years I would have fulfilled my goal." Heihachi spoke, eye glazed gazing forward as if gazing into a visible future. Kazi frowned and nudged the older man with his elbow, lightly.

"In seven years you'll be old." Both men chuckled and eventually left the compound.

_Slightly over a year later._

Sitting under the blazing July sun in Hon-Maru, Heihachi meditated with much success. Every now and then the heat would break his concentration but, nothing too disturbing or menacing. Sweat ran down from his brow and down his back but, it he had been in the position long enough to be accustomed to the tiny tickling. He could hear much in his position, quieting his mind was a skill he had spent a long time to perfect but, closing off the entire world was something he was wary of doing. Being in the city so long made him wary of everything so in the country he retained that sense of cautious. Because of that he could hear the animals and the wind in the forest, it wasn't terribly distracting but, it was a strange sensation of sorts. Something like suddenly acquiring superhuman hearing without being able to control it, a fun sensation but, disorienting in the same instance.

Smells were of the same sort, though not as powerful. He could smell cooking coming from the nearest settlement, as well as the grass' crisp smell of being freshly cut. He also smelled some sour scents of animals deeper in the forest. His own scent in his nose as well, cologne, sweat and deodorant creating a confusing mesh of unnatural scents for one man. This thought jerked Heihachi out of his meditation, he suddenly felt not apart of the natural world. His smells were not of nature and attempted to cover it up, he bathed in the water but, the stench of conformity and boardrooms lingered on his body. His mind struggled to not open his eyes, his meditation was broken and he wished to be free from this still spot. Maybe he could go hunting for rock turtles in the deeper water, or maybe bird watching or something mundane and not related to robots and military contracts.

It didn't matter anymore, his time away from the Zaibatsu was time he enjoyed deeply. With Lee in educating himself in America there wasn't much for Heihachi to concentrate on on his off days from the Zaibatsu. Most of the time he slept, because he didn't sleep when he worked. Kazi had an apartment in the city and was on call twenty-four hours, only a couple of times did Heihachi call him after a certain hour. Kazi also insisted on paying his own rent from the meager pay he received from the Zaibatsu, something Heihachi found to be baffling. He was more than ready to pay for Kazi's living expenses but, the young man refused. As compensation the young man was kept well in Heihachi's care, often traveling as an equal partner rather than some random driver.

Heihachi's eyes opened, unable to resist anymore and the sun burned the sensitive optical nerves for a moment before adjusting and much to his surprise, Wang Jinrei stood only a few feet in front of him.

"Mishima!" The old Chinese man called when he saw Heihachi had opened his eyes. Heihachi looked around for a moment judging what time it was. Not much time had passed, when had Jinrei gotten so close. So much for the superhuman hearing.

"Jinrei," Heihachi spoke. "You creep more quiet than a field mouse" Heihachi spoke, Jinrei shook his head.

"Creep?" Jinrei took an offended tone but, one not too serious. "I simply walked up, your perception is lazy." Jinrei was close enough to slap Heihachi on the shoulder and did so with a deal of affection, politely Heihachi bowed to the man.

"Please sit," Jinrei spoke again. "I'm too tired to stand and speak with you." Jinrei explained. Heihachi obeyed and sat cross legged on the grass, Jinrei followed the movements less fluidly. When he was finally on the grown Jinrei sighed loudly.

"Is there something in particular you came for?" Heihachi asked; Jinrei shook his head.

"Nothing too serious," Jinrei slapped his thigh and reached to his right for a package he had laid beside him. Heihachi observed there were two packages but, the second one, Jinrei didn't reach for, was large and just as Heihachi was forced to look away he thought he saw it move.

"I have your mail," Jinrei explained. "apparently you're too busy to remember to build a mailbox that the staff can stuff it in." Jinrei went on, Heihachi took the mail and flipped through it half heartedly.

"Thanks I'll make one today," Heihachi said distractedly.

"There's a letter from Lee in there." Jinrei went on, ignoring that Heihachi had spoke. Heihachi looked up.

"You read my mail?" Heihachi asked. Jinrei shook his head.

"It was addressed to me, he sent it to me because he didn't think sending it to the Zaibatsu was appropriate and couldn't remember your address." Jinrei explained.

"Anything of grave significance?" Heihachi asked, again the old Chinese man shook his head.

"Details of his schooling and his gratitude for you allowing him to intern at the Zaibatsu" Jinrei explained, Heihachi grunted.

"What is that?" Heihachi asked, pointing at the second package. Jinrei smiled and nodded his head for once.

"That's the second reason I came," Jinrei pulled the package into his lap revealing it was heavier than Heihachi had thought. "You weren't here a few weeks ago but, some hunters entered the grounds later in the night." Jinrei looked Heihachi in the eyes. "The staff had all left for the holiday and they thought this was an open forest and began shooting any thing that moved. They caused such a fuss I had to go into the forest and find them."

"Were they cooperative?" Heihachi asked?

"Not in the least, they thought I was some sort of derelict. but they had woken me from my sleep, as I was packing the remains of my property. Needless to say I had to give them a bit of," He paused and rubbed his fist. "…coaxing. And they left the grounds but, not before they killed two bears." Heihachi frowned visibly and made a face, he rather liked animals, especially bears.

"The vermin!" Heihachi exclaimed.

"Indeed but, I searched the caves for any pups and lo and behold," Jinrei slowly unwrapped the package and sitting in the white blanket was a small bear cub. "He's only a few weeks old. I knew you liked bears, I decided to bring him to you before going to a sanctuary." Heihachi's eyes widened at the sight of the cub. To Jinrei he looked like a young boy again, fawning over a toy.

"He's adorable" Heihachi couldn't resist saying, he reached his hands out and took the cub from Jinrei carefully.

"I know you're busy but, would you care for it?" Jinrei asked; Heihachi didn't hesitate at all in his nodding.

"Of course, I will raise it, and it will be obedient." Heihachi explained; Jinrei nodded.

"What will you name it?" Jinrei asked; Heihachi puzzled for a moment looking at the little hairy face as if the answer would spring from it's mouth. Then in a sudden bout of creativeness as if remembering something he had forgotten he responded.

"Kuma" Jinrei frowned at this name.

"How," He paused (for 'Kuma' was the word for Bear in Heihachi's native language) "Inspired."

"I will treat him well, so he won't mind" Heihachi explained.

"Good I was hoping for this sort of reaction" Jinrei smiled. "Oh I warn you, he's quite nippy." Jinrei cautioned just as the cub snapped at Heihachi's finger. Jinrei slowly got up and stretched vocally.

"Alright Businessman, I'll see you some other time." His tone was sarcastic and lighthearted so Heihachi responded like-mindedly.

"Will you have even _more_ liver spots then?" Heihachi asked with a grin about his face but; Jinrei didn't turn in his response.

"Perhaps but, by then you will have gone totally bald." And the old man left without another word. Heihachi didn't issue a response either. For the quip about his hair balding was true.


	14. Conspirators

The sun cooked the blacktop surface of the road at a temperature unheard of by human flesh and yet he walked with no shoes, showing no signs of discomfort or pain. His feet were bandaged but, it was unclear for what reason. He wore jeans, blue a bit rugged and probably old from the nature of the tears on them and a white undershirt commonly referred to as a 'wife-beater' by the locals. He cared nothing for whatever fashion statement he was making, he walked with purpose, looking for information or a source to find strength in. His tanned body reflected the sun and his muscles ornamented nearly every aspect of his body. He wasn't enormous but, in well form for a man his age, his eyes were cold like stone, they never changed emotions. A bland, disinterested gaze they didn't falter in the face of questions or answers.

He remained hidden within a sea of people, no one he had ever met knew who he was and he only needed to lie about his name a handful of times in many years. He quietly stalked his ultimate goal, everything fell into place. His body, his mind, his reasons, they all were apart of a larger purpose and meaning. Yet still he was at a loss at how to commence his plan. Time would tell, he only needed to be patient, time flowed on and opportunity would find it's way back to him again.

He needed to be powerful though, more powerful than he could imagine himself being. And so every so often he would start a fight with a street tough or annoy a small gang until the point of physical violence and each time they fell to his feet like rodents. It aggravated him, he knew he was strong but, he could not gauge the height of his power if he could not find suitable opposition to fight against. These men were just flesh and bone, muscle and might but, they had nothing behind that power, nothing drove them to victory. They were all empty vessels that couldn't conceive his superior intent.

It bothered him so, he felt deranged with anger and disappointment, if he wanted to, he could rule all these people with his sheer fist. Their weapons and might were nothing compared to his goal. They would come powerful and confident and leave broken and dead. In his mind he scoffed at two people walking across from him, two men exiting a gym, muscles still pumping from their workout but, in their eyes they showed a vacancy. They did it for aesthetics, superficial needs that had to be filled but, they understood nothing about true might. A _need_ to fix something broken with your own hands, that to fail would be the same as losing your life. They knew nothing of this sort of desperation so they walked around with smiling faces, unawares that the world around them plotted deeply against them. That their demise was closer than they imagined and they would die as they were born: a feeble weakling.

After all this was America, the land of the free. A sprawling democracy where rules were loosely kept laws, abided by those who feared it and broken by those who made it. They knew nothing of real tyranny, of waking up and knowing the entire nation you belonged to was seeking out your destruction. No, these people knew nothing of having the boot relentlessly pressed against your neck for twenty-three years and having to escape with a might stronger than that of your oppressor.

Either way America provided an easy cover for escape. So many happy smiling faces in the country, his was barely seen. A country that opened its gates to any person with the ability to walk through, he instantly became a single digit in a twenty million figure number. He looked around took mental notes, he knew where he was but, where he was going was harder to answer. At this current time he wandered the south of the country, entering the state of Arizona. There would be most likely nothing here for him, he would keep walking until eventually he reached the edge of the country facing the ocean. A small drop of water that separated him from his ultimate achievement, at the thought of it his mind and body swooned slightly both out of anticipation and fear. It was only a matter of time before he would be ready to finish what the other had started.

**2 years Before Tekken I**

All the planning, money and clout in the world could not make Daniel Herenger successful in his attempts to murder Heihachi Mishima. (Of course Daniel Herenger was not his real name but, the true nature of his identity isn't as important now as it will be in the future.) He angrily went over plan after plan, each looking more promising than the last but, somehow the Mishima survived. He despised the Mishima so much that his blood would boil the simple mentioning of his name. The two had met before (unbeknownst to Heihachi) and the Mishima made a fool of him and so he deserved revenge.

The truth was he was behind nearly every attack on Heihachi's life as well as the stolen plans for the JACK program. He planned and oversaw the entire production and the first fully operational JACK was completed a year and a half prior. The problem was finding a buyer, because the plans were stolen he knew he couldn't put out the machines under his company, it would only be a little time before the Zaibatsu crushed them in revenge. But if he could sell the machines in a government contract in secrecy his anonymity would be maintained and he could watch as the Zaibatsu writhed in its failure.

He smiled, that was the plan and it was a damned good one in his mind. All he needed was a buyer. Yet still it wasn't enough, he wouldn't be satisfied until Heihachi Mishima himself lost everything. 'Herenger' was aided by the Yakuza, though not directly, the fact that they wanted Heihachi dead was only to his benefit but, neither of them had succeeded. Up until this point his plans had been over the top, large explosions, legions of armed men and it never worked. A more personal attack is what he needed but, he wasn't sure how to obtain that.

'Herenger' was desperate but, not foolish. He knew not to reach out to the Yakuza, if they were successful then that was an added benefit but, working together was not an option. 'Herenger' did run a legitimate business (Also the true nature of his business will be revealed later as it is not as important at this very moment) and couldn't risk that company falling into failure because of his need to have revenge of Heihachi Mishima.

The Mishima was relentless. 'Herenger' was shocked to know that the leader of the Mishima Zaibatsu broke into his secret offices and stole information. It was so brazen it was practically unbelievable, and 'Herenger' knew that Mishima was being aided by someone and that someone's file was on his desk that very moment along with another.

"Of course" 'Herenger' said to himself looking at the file. He had seen the man before a few times, a 'do-gooder' in the Chinese government. It made him sick that someone like this could protect a filthy mongrel like Heihachi but, there were simple ways to deal with those kinds of problems too. Heihachi may be hard to kill but, this man probably wasn't. Cut off the supply and Heihachi would be clueless and without recourse. It wasn't the most glamorous of plans all the killing and whatnot but, 'Herenger' didn't live in a glamorous world. He deserved to be the top of his world and if someone stood in the way of his right, he would knock them down.

"Kai Wulong," 'Herenger' said to the man's file shaking his head and sucking his teeth sympathetically. "You just didn't know when to quit."

A simple delivered bomb would do for the police chief so 'Herenger' didn't think about it too much but, the other; Heihachi needed a more personal touch. Someone who was good at what they did and came with the backing of many employers, an assassin. 'Herenger' put, his feelers out into the world and his contacts brought him back one name and that person's file was also on his desk. In a disgusted manner he put down the Chinese police chief's file and pick up the other. Quietly he read it to himself for a moment and smiled at the credentials; these results weren't half bad, it pleased him so. Behind the last page was a picture of the assassin, he studied it and then frowned. Getting into contact with the assassin would be a challenge and take time but, perhaps that would work to his favor. Perhaps Heihachi Mishima would be comfortable in his apparent safety so when the time came he would be caught unawares and destroyed.

Oh indeed it pleased 'Daniel Herenger'

So much so that he read the assassins name out loud in glee.

"Nina Williams."


	15. 1 Year Before Tekken I

**1 Year Before Tekken I**

The water streamed from the top of the apartment building onto the concrete below. The blackened bricks, wood (now more cinder than anything) and glass ornamented the side of the building and a huge gash in the front of the building spelled out the interior to the people below. The fire department chief declared the building would stand but, the look of it said otherwise. Like a man standing slouched with a gaping hole filling his chest.

Both Heihachi and Kazi stood under the building looking up at the wreck, to their right was the Chinese police chief and his adult son. The bomb was intended for at least one of them but, detonated five minutes too early, so the patriarch and son lived to see another day. Heihachi was in town for more business and suddenly got a call from Wulong explaining the explosion. Heihachi and Kazi both arrived quickly to see the damage done.

"I'm positive this has something to do with you." Kai spoke half jokingly. He sighed and looked at Heihachi, Heihachi nodded.

"I think I agree with you." Heihachi sighed himself, no amount of apologies would do any good.

"Only a few days ago I got an piece of mail explaining that someone wasn't happy with my helping you," Kai looked at the building again. "When I continued into looking about the things we talked about this happened." Heihachi nodded.

"Only means we're getting close to the mark" Heihachi surmised but, Kai didn't seem as enthusiastic.

"No more we," Kai began with a look of shame in his eyes. "This is too close a call. If Lei hadn't gone out with me, he would have been in there." He pulled his son over, 23 year old Lei Wulong. "He's a cop himself but, he doesn't need these extra threats." Kai went on.

"I tell him he shouldn't worry about it so much, I see worse on the street everyday." Lei tried to reassure but, Heihachi shook his head.

"No, your father is right," Heihachi interjected. "There's no reason for my problems to start putting your lives in danger." Heihachi's faced stiffened to stone.

"I feel terrible for this, I'm not sure what else I can do." Kai shrugged but, Heihachi shook his head.

"You've done enough," Heihachi looked up at the building and gestured to it. "Do you have a P.O. Box?" Heihachi asked; puzzled by the change of subject Kai answered.

"Yes I do" Heihachi nodded.

"Good, in three days check it," He turned to leave, Kazi followed. "Cash the check outside the country" and with that he exited.

The car ride began strangely quiet but, as Kazi drove he spoke up.

"What are we going to do?" He asked; hypothetically, not expecting anything as a serious answer.

"I have a way." Heihachi spoke confidently looking out the window. Kazi, stunned at the answer looked into the rear-view mirror at Heihachi. Sensing his young companions surprise Heihachi returned the look into the mirror.

"An actual way?" Kazi asked; Heihachi nodded solemnly.

"It's something I've been thinking about for a long time." Heihachi explained; Kazi diverted to the road a moment but, then back at Heihachi's reflection.

"Go on…" Kazi anxiously awaited.

"My enemies are numerous and they hide in shadows," Heihachi began. "They do so because they know if I knew who they were it would only be a matter of time before I would be rid of them." Heihachi explained.

"Agreed." Kazi spoke.

"I think I've thought of a way to get them out in the open," Heihachi went on. "All of them, together, at once." Heihachi concluded; at this point Kazi was beaming with so much excitement he could barely concentrate on the road.

"Some kind of dinner party?" Kazi asked; Heihachi shook his head.

"Better," Heihachi spoke tersely; He took a pause and thought for a moment, playing with the words in his mind over and over. It sounded good in there so he finally said out-loud: "A fighting tournament."

In America a street tough was fixing his motorcycle. He saw him from a distance and watched him closely. If trained one could see power in another, true power, the kind that separated men from fighters and warriors. Even from afar he could see this man was the latter, though he clumsily fiddled about the vehicle there was something undeniable about this man's power, it hovered around him like an aura of strength. It was intoxicating, the first he had seen ever, to defeat this man would bestow more power to him and then maybe he'd be ready to go after _him_. Slowly he approached, there was no need to ambush this man, not that it would have been possible in the first place but, to fight him with honor, face to face would be the ultimate test.

As he approached he heard the man cursing at the machine loudly and violently, angrily he smashed a wrench into a piece of the motorcycle and strung a long line of cursing before getting up and wiping himself off. When he was fully standing, the two men were face to face. For a moment they just stood their looking at one another, The motorcycle man waited for the other to begin but, he didn't.

"What the hell do you want?" The motorcycle man finally spoke but, the other man didn't move in intimidation. Instead he admired his form, he stood like a warrior, it was refreshing.

"I am a fighter, looking for worthy opponents" He spoke; the motorcycle man raised an eyebrow.

"Alright…" He spoke confused by this new man's presence. He too sized the other up, he could tell the man was a fighter, not just by his muscles but, the way he stood, casually prepared for any attack.

"I sense you are a powerful fighter," The man began.

"I'm alright." the motorcycle man cut him off, skeptically.

"I wish an audience in battle." The other man revealed; at this the motorcycle man shook his head.

"I don't just fight random people on the street," The motorcycle man explained. "Not unless I have to. If you want to fight, come to my Dojo and spar with me." He suggested but, the other man shook his head.

"Surprise brings out the toughest of warriors, I wish to fight here and now." He explained; the motorcycle man seemed to be displeased with this answer.

"Look, I told you no. That's that." At the end of his statement the other man walked by him and with no effort at all picked up his motorcycle and tossed it a few feet away from them.

The horrific smashing of the motorcycle on the pavement was so shocking the motorcycle man cursed instinctively. He turned to the man who had tossed it.

"Fight me now, or I will destroy the rest of it." he offered; at this the motorcycle man rolled up his sleeves and stretched his neck left and then right.

"Fine you asked for it." He put his body in a stance for fighting and shouted: "Osu!" The other man smiled happily at the declaration and went into his own stance for fighting.

For a moment they stood there watching each other, waiting for the other to attack. In the distance the city made sounds but, they were both focused on each other.

Suddenly the motorcycle man shot forward with a punch, one the other man saw coming and braced in defense to take. He had fought many men, all their punches felt tiny. Most of the men he fought were felled by a single blow from him but, when this motorcycle man's punch connected he felt the whole of his body shake in horror. The sheer strength of the attack boggled his mind in such a way that he was forced to jump back to gain his wits.

Never had he felt a blow like this one, it was both concerning and exciting. A man of this strength would grant him an equal reward. When his feet touched the ground from the evasion the motorcycle man was into another attack, a kick aimed for his neck. This he countered with the sheer might of his forearm, the kick hit his arm but, the arm didn't falter at all. A look in the motorcycle man's eyes betrayed his surprise at the block.

Seizing the moment, the tanned man push the leg aside and followed up with a series of punches that landed squarely on the motorcycle man's chest and face. He stumbled back briefly but, found an opening to dodge a kick and used his momentum to shove his elbow into the other's stomach. Each man's blows were so powerful the other was unsure if he was going to be able to continue the battle.

As the breath shot out of his body, the other man took his own elbow and smashed it into the motorcycle man's shoulders. This caused them both to take a leap back in surprise. They stood watching one another, each bleeding about the face slightly, they watched the other's breathing and body looking for an opportunity, a weakness…something.

Within a flash the motorcycle man was leaping at him again and in this he saw a chance to end the battle so the other leapt forward as well. Both men landed their blows, two punches to the chest so damaging it sent the both of them flying backwards without control.

He hit the ground hard, scrapping skin off his muscle and bleeding more but, refused to stay down, he stood looking and the motorcycle man was up too. His body was failing, he hadn't prepared for this sort of battle, he needed rest, time to reflect on the battle to learn. Never had he encountered a man of this strength.

Was the battle lost?

"Enough!" The motorcycle man suddenly called holding his side and breathing hard. "I get it you're good." His body softened no longer cautious resigning from the fight. Seeing this the other man did the same, secretly relieved at the result. The motorcycle man walked over nodded and said: "you win"

"No," the other quickly rejected, he may have been proud but, he hadn't won this battle. It had to be called what it was. "Neither of us are victors, we shall call it a draw." The other man suggested, the motorcycle man nodded.

"Alright," he huffed. "Wow, never had a battle like that. You're pretty good," He smiled. "My name is Paul Phoenix" He offered his hand for a handshake and the other man shook it and grunted. "I train at a Dojo with a good friend of mine name Law, sometimes we take good fighters in for sparring, we'd love to have you come in, if you're interested." He handed him a card that read: "Phoenix Law Dojo" and an address.

"I'm just a traveler," the man spoke.

"I've never fought anyone like you, Law would be amazed to spar with you." Phoenix explained.

"Is he as strong as you?" The man asked; at this Phoenix frowned.

"I wouldn't say as strong but, he's close enough." The other man grunted.

"I'll consider it." He admitted; then he went into his pocket and pulled out a few bills he handed them to Phoenix and said: "This should fix your bike" He explained, Phoenix took the money with a nod and smiled.

"Thanks," He looked the man in his eyes. "I hope to see you there." The other man grunted again and said:

"Perhaps"

_A few weeks later_

"Let me just be on the record with saying that I _don't_ think this is a good idea" Kazi admitted; Heihachi nodded. The two had been going over the details of Heihachi's plan for a fighting tournament to coax his enemies out of hiding.

"I'm a Mishima no one can beat me at fighting." Heihachi boasted; Kazi nodded.

"And they know that, so why would they enter?" Kazi asked.

"A million dollars didn't sound like a good enough reason?" Heihachi asked; Kazi shook his head.

"If they have enough money to keep trying to kill you then a million dollars is probably a drop in the bucket for them." Kazi explained, Heihachi mulled over the fact and rubbed his head. He was completely bald in the middle of his head. The hair on either side hadn't fallen out at all, so it appeared he had to big spikes of hair on either side. At first it looked strange but, he grew to get used to it.

"My father used to tell me that if you wanted to catch a fish you needed a bait as big at the fish you wanted to catch." Heihachi remembered; Kazi shrugged.

"What does that mean in this situation?" Kazi asked; Heihachi shrugged.

"We need something they couldn't possibly pass up." Heihachi explained. For a moment they sat in silence outside the dock, outside boats floated on the water peacefully.

"What could you offer?" Kazi asked more to himself than to Heihachi but, at the sound of his voice Heihachi seemed to think of it. He looked Kazi in the eye and gave him a look Kazi wasn't sure that he liked.

"The Zaibatsu." Kazi shook his head and closed his eyes as if trying to shake the thought out of his mind.

"What?" He exclaimed. "You'd put the company on the line for this?"

"The company is already on the line," Heihachi explained. "If I don't stop these people they'll stop me. This way I can be assured that they'll come."

"Yes but, so will everyone else. Everyone is going to want to have a piece of the Zaibatsu" Kazi explained.

"But no one will," Heihachi said confidently "No one will defeat me." Kazi sighed, it was clear Heihachi had made up his mind but, to Kazi it was the worse sounding idea he had heard a long time.

"Well you better go, He's been waiting for ten minutes now" Kazi sighed; Heihachi looked at this watch and frowned.

"Alright, just stay here, it shouldn't take long."

Heihachi exited the car onto the marina and saw the boat he was going to board. It wasn't going to take off, instead it would wait there at the dock. A cocktail boat of sorts, complete with a restaurant and bar, Heihachi boarded the boat and sat down next to Wang Jinrei who was already sitting and drinking something with alcohol.

"Ho-ho!" Jinrei exclaimed. "You're late." He said putting the drink down, Heihachi sat and bowed in politeness.

"Forgive me Jinrei," Heihachi asked. "I'm glad you decided to come." Heihachi explained. Jinrei shrugged.

'Well, it's not every day this old man gets invited to a boat with drinks and beautiful hostesses." Jinrei explained. "Though I don't think you invited me here just for the sights." Heihachi chuckled.

"No," he admitted. "I wanted to ask you for your help." Heihachi explained; Jinrei nodded.

"What else would a Mishima want from me?" he asked lightheartedly.

"Someone is trying to kill me, and I need to stop them." Heihachi explained further. Jinrei took a sip of his drink and as he put it down he spoke again.

"I recall, what else could I do?" He asked. Heihachi smiled.

"I've figured a way to get all my aggressors in one place." Heihachi explained; Jinrei didn't look him in the eye but, watched the water.

"And how is that?" He asked.

"A fighting tournament." Heihachi explained; Jinrei nodded.

"Something you couldn't possibly lose, a smart idea." Jinrei acknowledge. "But you enemies won't be jumping at the chance to fight you head on." Jinrei continued.

"The winning prize is a million dollars," Heihachi explained; Jinrei made a slight gesture of reluctance. "and the Mishima Zaibatsu" At this Jinrei looked Heihachi directly in the eyes.

"You would risk your company?" Jinrei asked. "Your Father's company?" The sound of that word: 'father' hit Heihachi hard and he sighed at Jinrei's disapproval.

"You remember what he used to say," Heihachi said begging. Jinrei nodded.

"About this fish?" Heihachi nodded. "Yes, but he was literally talking about fishing. That doesn't mean you put the Mishima Conglomerate on the line." Wang explained.

"This is the only way," Heihachi admitted. "They're attacks are getting stronger and closer to me." Jinrei sighed.

"I know well enough to know when a Mishima has made up his mind," Jinrei explained. "And you are more than powerful enough to win whatever fighting tournament you can dream of," Jinrei went on. "You didn't call me here solely for my approval." Heihachi nodded.

"I wanted security," Heihachi admitted. "Just in case it gets overwhelming I'd like another person in my corner." Heihachi confessed; Jinrei slowly nodded his head before simply saying:

"No," His expression softened though and he lightly tapped Heihachi on the arm. "My fighting days are far behind me, I could never hope to even place in a fighting tournament." he explained.

"That's rubbish and you know it." Heihachi sulked.

"Maybe but, I don't wish to fight anymore either," Jinrei explained. "You are the most powerful Mishima I have seen, there's no reason why you can't complete what you start." Jinrei explained.

"I suppose so." Heihachi said quietly.

"Where's that Mishima confidence?" Jinrei asked. "You are Heihachi, who could possibly defeat you?" Heihachi laughed.

"Are you sure you're not just saying this so you can enter and defeat me?" Heihachi asked. Jinrei laughed at this with a hearty laugh Heihachi hadn't heard from him in a while.

"That's not a bad idea."

The two men talked for an hour or two more and eventually Jinrei became drunk and had to leave. He refused to have Heihachi driver him home, citing that he had been too pampered that day, so Heihachi let him go. Back in the car Kazi inquired on the meeting.

"Did he change your mind about all of this?" Kazi asked as he started the car; Heihachi shook his head.

"No."

"Great," Kazi said sarcastically. "I suppose we should start brainstorming ideas." Kazi asked but, Heihachi shook his head again.

"There's no need," He answered. "We're going to hold a press conference tomorrow."

_The next day, elsewhere._

He stayed in Arizona, he had to recover from the fight. He spent weeks meditating and training his body, remember the force of the blows he hardened his body to grow stronger than them

One day as he walked down the street he passed an electronics store, in the window were televisions. He thought nothing of it, until _his_ face came on the screen. He couldn't hear anything but, he could see him speaking with a banner at the bottom of the screen that read: "Mishima Zaibatsu to hold worldwide fighting tournament." He felt his entire soul swell with anger, excitement and hatred.

A fighting tournament?

This was his chance; this is _exactly_ what he had been waiting for. He would enter the tournament as soon as he could. But what about others? He needed someone to go with him, someone powerful enough to ensure his way to the top. Paul Phoenix was powerful; desperately he searched his pocket for the card that said "Phoenix Law Dojo". Surely he'd be interested; together they could get to the final round. He looked back at the television.

Finally he would kill Heihachi Mishima.


	16. The Rules

_The Following Takes Place during the Registration portion of the First King of Iron Fist Tournament._

The Rules:

The King of Iron Fist Tournament (also referred to as 'Tekken') will be held in four weeks time. There are no special requirements for any participants so long as they are able to pay the sponsorship fee, unless it is specified as waived. Corporations may sponsor individual participants (no more than 2 Two) as long as the payment is made in the name of the participant.

Sponsorship is Six Hundred American dollars and it 1) Ensures a place in the King of Iron Fist Tournament 2) Room and board for travel 3) Travel expenses 4) Medical expenses.

All participants waive their right to legally defend or prosecute themselves for any damaged incurred during the duration of the tournaments. Participants may sue individuals participating but, none shall bring legal charges against the Mishima Zaibatsu.

After the selected registration period no one shall be able to enter the King of Iron Tournament.

After the selected registration period any registered participant may forfeit the tournament and eligibility to win the 1st/First place prize. Any forfeiters will not be eligible for the return of the sponsorship fee.

The Mishima Zaibatsu holds the right to grant or deny any extra charges incurred during the tournament.

Participants are not only expected to abide by the rules of the tournament but, also by the laws of the particular country they are in at any given point.

Winners of each round can only be determined during a select amount of time determined by the Zaibatsu (Any attempt to win rounds outside of the selected time will result in disqualification from the tournament)

Losers of a round are expected to immediately forfeit from the tournament (Any attempt to win rounds after a loss will lead to expulsion and legal action being set against them)

Winners will be determined in one on one matches of the Zaibatsu's determination; during the rounds participants will wear specialized monitors which will record the outcome of the battle. (Any attempt to tamper with these monitors will result in immediate disqualification from the tournament)

In the event of a draw both participants will be allowed to move on as planned. In the event that both are not defeated by the final round they will compete in a one round fight between themselves again to determine a winner.

Results of rounds can not be disputed unless specified by the Mishima Zaibatsu.

No participants may wield weapons (unless waived by the Zaibatsu)

No participants may refuse a round with another participant without forfeiting.

Murder or excessive damage may be done to any participant by another.

If Participants don't show up at specified battle grounds in time they shall be disqualified from the tournament.

Problems with travel arrangements should be reported to the Zaibatsu promptly.

Participants cannot be registered in groups. (Once registered participants fight on a one man team)

Participants will be set up with special mail-box accounts to learn where the next round of fighting will be located. Participants can only access this box _after_ they have won the previous round (Any attempt to reach the box before the winning of a round will result in disqualification)

The winner of the tournament will be rewarded One Million/$1,000,000 American dollars. (reward _must_ be claimed within seven days of winning the tournament or it will be forfeited.)

The winner of the tournament will be rewarded ownership of the Mishima Zaibatsu (This includes The Mishima Financial Empire, Mishima Heavy Industries and the Mishima Zaibatsu. Reward _must_ be claimed within seven days of winning the tournament or it will be forfeited)


	17. King

**King**:

The sun in the Mexican sky was setting. The sky was of Azure, amethyst and ruby, the clouds parted in the right places allowing for majesty of the sky to be fully seen, a few birds danced between them. It was a painting in which no man could paint, and wonder that no man could conceive.

Yet still some men missed the beauty fully, some men were caught up in the ritual of human life that they were unable to bask in the bliss of nature. Though it wasn't always their fault, not every man could put away real life to just submerge himself in nature that, would be foolish. Some men had to focus on life, on living and on dying.

He was dying, his body was broken and screaming for some sort of release yet, he struggled on, refusing to accept the fate. Those bastards had gotten him this time but, revenge was a sweet dish and he would feast on it soon enough but, first he needed to get some help. Of course he wandered for hours looking for a hospital or hut, or some sign of other human life, someone who would take reasonable pity on him with few questions asked but, instead the fruits of his labor resulted in stumbling upon, of all places, a church.

He cursed his luck aloud, he told himself to conserve his energy but, he couldn't resist the final insult. God and angels and heaven, it was all a joke, he had spent his life using his hands to beat people into the ground, what did God know of that? What did God know of growing up poor, surrounded by gangs and having to survive on your own in a kill or be killed world when you were only ten? Nothing. God sat on his perch and judged men like him told them they weren't worthy of favor because of the hand _He_ delivered to them. God was a hypocrite and he and God had been astringed for a long time and now he was on the verge of collapse needing his help.

He would have laughed if he wasn't in so much pain, he would have laughed if it weren't so serious. For a moment that felt like many long years he stood in front of the church, should he knock? Scream for help? Could he make it that far? Could he yell that loud? Saints glowed in the fleeting daylight, staring at him, they're expression of worship and some other emotion he couldn't make out. Would they vouch on his behalf? Pitying his condemned soul? Would he die and come in front of God and talk? What would God say to him? '_Who are you?'_ because surely God wouldn't recognize him, so many years apart he wasn't hardly the same man as he was back then.

And what would he say in response? What could he say that would make even God think twice in surprise? Something so shocking that the deity would be offended and think about for millennia or however long they remembered things? He thought slowly, thinking too fast was puzzling. It hit him, it was perfect a response worthy for a God. If God asked him who he was he would answer:

"I am King."

And then he collapsed.

If there was one feeling worse than collapsing it was coming to. Something about clawing your way out of the depths of death and the grip of your subconscious was worse than slipping in. In that moment one was so aware of every little feeling in their mind and body. It was a horrible thing but, it subsided…eventually.

His hearing returned first, (actually his sight returned first but, he did not have the strength to open them) he could hear the women looking over him and praying and commenting on his condition.

"Dios Mio" they would utter to each other: "Ay Dios, por favor regresalo." He would laugh silently at their worry. They didn't know him but, they sounded so concerned, like the old ladies in the village who did nothing but watch the young kids and fret over their adventurous ways. But that wasn't enough to bring him back to complete consciousness, in fact most of the time he didn't know where he was or why he was there. His memory wasn't functioning at that rate yet, all he knew was that he was somewhere and some women were frightened for him.

Eventually he did open his eyes he saw that the women looking over him were nouns. When his eyes opened their faces widened and they gasps loudly and ran shouting to the father. He wavered unable to get up but, unable to fall back into a sleep again, indeed it was a horrible feeling. When the father came he smiled at him and pressed a cool towel on his forehead. In their language he spoke:

"You rise from the depths." He said, smiling at the young man, the way a father smiles at his newborn child.

"Where am I?" the young man asked; the father dabbed his head softly.

"The Holy Church of Saints Joachim and Anne" the father answered. "Tell me, my son, what is your name?" The young man thought for a moment, if they knew who he was they might throw him out. He had somewhat of a reputation.

"My name is King." he answered half truthfully. The father somewhat chuckled at the name.

"An ambitious name for such a young man," the father answered. "but, if you can survive injuries like the ones you have God must have a great plan for you." He went on.

"Injuries?" King asked; the father nodded,

"You were pretty hurt when you came here but, you have woken again and that's what matters." He smiled again. "You should rest, we will go over all the details soon my son. Relax you are safe here."

King didn't say anything else but, he felt strange. He felt safe truly, it was a feeling he wasn't used to but it felt nice.

In a few months King was well enough to walk around again. He felt guilty about being useless for so long, he might have been a fighting hooligan but, he never looked for handouts. So he stayed in the church doing odds and ends jobs for the sisters and father. They paid him in food and lessons on religion, initially it was awkward listening to them preach but, over some time he gotten used to it and even began to take to it.

King felt so at home he stayed at the church permanently and took an apprenticeship under the father, he took a new name (because 'King' was too ambitious for an aspiring priest) Rey, to appease himself and the church. In years that followed he became a full fledged priest, giving the word to strangers who passed and villagers who came weekly to the church to worship.

In his third year as the priest Rey, a fire started in the nearest village many of the weekly parishioners were killed and their children left behind. This served as a problem

"Rey, we pray to God and thank him for sparing these children" the Father spoke to him one day. "but have no place to send them to sleep, and barely enough food to feed them. I pray for an answer." Rey/King nodded and thought deeply over the issue.

"It is a special blessing that the children have survived, and God will deliver us an answer soon I pray."

That night Rey/King went to the kids to help them sleep and read them a story for them to fall asleep to but, this time they told him a story. One child named Gonzalo retold a Christmas story.

"I remember, two years ago, my mother told me that we would have to skip Christmas that year because my father had gotten hurt while working and there wasn't enough money to feed us and buy us presents. I cried all night not understanding and my father consoled me. The next couple of weeks my father stayed out so much, my mother would argue with him about it, that he spent too much time with his friends while they needed help in the home but, he never argued back, he would always kiss her cheek and tell her he was sorry and the next day the same thing would happen again. On Christmas eve my father didn't come home and my mother cried all night until she fell asleep in the kitchen. On Christmas we woke up and went downstairs, mother was still sleeping but, the living room was filled with toys, we were so surprised we all screamed for joy, waking mother up in a panic. She came into the room startled and scared but, calmed when she saw us smiling and all the toys. We thanked God and she told us we were right to but, that we should also thank our father, for he must have been taking extra shifts at work during his injury to make enough money to buy all the toys," It was then little Gonzalo began to cry. "and now they're both dead and I won't see her smile like that again, or thank father for those toys."

The story disturbed Rey/King quite a bit and he gave some general words of peace about God and the grand design but, he went to his bed with the story heavy on his mind.

Early the next morning Rey/King woke and left the church and walked to the nearest village and took a truck into the city. He had money saved up over the years and wanted to buy toys for all the children. In the city he was able to find a shop that sold stuffed animals for kids, the shop was next to a bar, inside he could hear people yelling and being boisterous. He ignored the sounds and got the toys but, when he came out he noticed a sign on the bar's door. The one million dollar prize caught his eyes. A fighting tournament, he hadn't heard of something this large before, he used to be a fighter and a damned good one. He could only think of what could be done with all the money.

Along with the toys Rey/King brought back the poster. Back the church the children were more than happy to see the toys, he passed each and everyone out. Five toys for each child, they were happy and their happiness brought him a deeper happiness.

After the children settled with their toys Rey/King went to the father and the sisters with the poster, he explained that he would enter the 'King of Iron Fist' Tournament, win the million dollar prize and build an orphanage in the church. He expected some resistance but, was surprised when the father forbade him to go.

"Violence is not of the lord," the father spoke. "It is a temptation of the devil. We have been doing poorly but, we have made it every single day. God delivers us out of that, not by raising our fist!" the Father protested; Rey/King understood but, insisted otherwise.

"A million dollars could feed and home so many kids," Rey/King answered. "Imagine how much _good_ we could achieve with an orphanage." he insisted but, the Father was beginning to tear.

"But at what cost?" He begged. "You are a priest!" The sisters stood silent and so did Rey/King for a long time. He was a priest but, what good was it if he couldn't _help_ these kids?

"Then I'm not a Priest anymore." At that the sisters burst into tears. "Sisters please, I will always be a son of the lord but, I must try. I must try to help these children." The sisters cried and the father stood up and walked out of the room with the poster.

Rey/King sat there thinking while the women cried and over time he began to cry as well. This wasn't what he wanted, he loved these people. It shouldn't have been this way.

When the father returned he sat back in his seat, more composed eyes red clearly he had cried while he was away. He looked Rey/King in the eye.

"You love those children?" He asked; Rey/King nodded his head.

"Of course." The father sighed and looked down at the poster.

"You need sponsorship to enter this 'King of Iron Fist' Tournament" the father suddenly said. Rey/King's eyes widened filled with tears. "We have just about this much saved up. We will sponsor your way into the tournament." the Father announced, the sisters wept more but, it changed from dismay to happiness. Rey/King stood and hugged the father.

"Thank you father, I will be forever in your debt." He admitted but, the father shook his head.

"You owe me nothing," he started. "King"

The next day King went into town with the money to register for the 'King of Iron Fist' tournament. Some other people were there but most were nosey townsmen inquiring about the details of the contest. King stood in a short line for the applicants (most were turned down for not having enough of the sponsorship money) he waited patiently. In one hand he held his form, in the other he had a bag with his identification papers and a jaguar mask he used to wear when he wrestled for pride. He decided he would wear it and reassume his old wrestlers identity with a new personality. When he got to the front of the line the representative seemed tired.

"Next," he called lazily, King stood before him. "You must have at least two-thirds of the sponsorship money to enter the tournament and a letter from a sponsor promising the rest of the money before the conclusion of the tournament." He repeated from memory with no emotion.

"I have all the money with me." King answered excitedly. The representative looked up surprised at the admission and his eyes became alive for a change.

"Oh ok, I suppose I'll take that now and we can fill out these forms and get you registered." and the two went over the forms until King was fully registered.

Feeling satisfied King left the registration hall and began back downtown, while he was walking a familiar voice called to him.

"King!" the voice beckoned from behind him; King turned around and standing there was a dark man in a grey jaguar's mask. He knew this man from the past, a long time ago a odd twist of fate seeing him here.

"Armor King, this is unexpected," King revealed. "Have you entered the 'King of Iron Fist' Tournament?" King asked as Armor King came closer. When the older, bigger man was close enough he pushed King on the chest roughly.

"I have and you?" He asked angered; King let the push fall from his memory.

"Indeed."

"Good I'll see you there, and we'll settle this," He gestured to his left eye, which was red like the setting sun made of blood. "Once and for all." King felt uncomfortable, he remembered doing that damage years ago.

"Armor King, I should apologize," King started. "I'm a different person now-"

"Save it King," he said the name like a slur. "I'll see you in the tournament" and with that he walked off.

King stood there for a while thinking about it but, it was of no use. Instead he went on back to the church smiling for his future.


	18. Armor King

**Armor King**:

"Save it King," he said the name like a slur. "I'll see you in the tournament" and with that he walked off. The blood in his veins was boiling, he had to control every urge not to go back to King and smash his face into his knee. But he had honor, he wrestled in honor not like that hoodlum. A fighting tournament was the right and appropriate place to settle the score once and for all, even if he didn't win he had to make sure he came against King in the 'King of Iron Fist' tournament and showed him who was the one, true King.

In the meantime he had to train, exercise and practice his new moves to see if they were practical in an actual fight. The day would come for his revenge soon enough and he would revel in it but, for now he had to go back his village and take care of his people. He walked slowly, he never ran everything happened in time. He would catch the truck back to the badlands and walk to his village, it would all take close to two hours so he had plenty of time to reminisce.

It was fifteen years ago, not very far from this city. Armor King lived with a traveling village. He served as the head patriarch, a man who fought with his hands and thought with his mind. He made sure that bandits and thieves didn't plague the villagers at any times, sometimes he would challenge dojo leaders in nearby neighborhoods for the distinction of fighting, always in a respectful way, never in malice.

The village eventually had to settle when bad seasons approached and on this year they settled next to another village. The inhabitants of the other village weren't entirely happy to see new people moving on. It didn't help that Armor King's people looked different, like himself they were mostly the color of eggplant, dark purple just a shade lighter than black, while the other tribe were a lighter brown color, like coffee heavily doused with crème. Though there was an obvious tension between the two, the other tribe didn't bother Armor King's people at all. The winter was coming and it was going to be a long one, so they were going to have to work together to get through it.

"I will go over and speak to them," Armor King suggested. "Someone will have to catch hounds for new sweaters and blankets if the nearest city is twenty miles away." He explained. He spoke to a man who looked not unlike himself.

"I don't see why you don't want me to go." the other man asked; he was cutting a piece of wood to a point, with a small knife. Armor King laughed.

"We all know your not the most diplomatic of speakers." Armor King answered; the other man rolled his eyes and chipped at the wood more forcibly.

"Have you seen those kids?" The other man sneered. "They run around like hoodlums and listen to no one, they lack discipline."

"So were we at that age." Armor King reminded but; the other man scoffed.

"Maybe _you _were brother," the other man said solemnly. "I knew my place then and now." Armor King nodded and smiled.

"That may be true," Armor King chuckled. "But we don't need you going over there turning over tables to get your way." At this the other man laughed slightly.

"I guess not but, a little pressure doesn't always hurt," Armor King looked at him incredulously. "Well maybe it does hurt but, a little pain isn't always a bad thing."

With that the two men parted and Armor King walked under the night sky, the moon crescent above him, to the other village. they were put together in a raggedy but, organized way. The tents were dirty and patched up but, they were also sturdy and stood upright in the wind. Tools lie on the ground rusting but, some were tools Armor King hadn't seen but, in cities. They were also organized in the shape of a city, all the common huts in one place, small shops and food suppliers elsewhere and the village elders in the north. Even though the night air was cool, it was also humid, so Armor King walked bare-chested in the night to the elders hut, his black hair shoulder length bouncing with each step. It had gotten dark but it wasn't late, in the near distance he could hear some boys playing soccer or some sort of horseplay, he continued on without looking in their direction.

When he reached the senior hut, he made a low sound to announce his being outside, not much after he was beckoned in. He entered and was surprise to seethe interior was a lot larger than he had imagine. There were books, clothes, jewelry and things of all sorts in the hut and in the far side the village elder sat in an expansive chair elevated by a small platform. On the right side of the tent when he came in was a young woman who smiled and bowed at him before gesturing for Armor King to go to the elder.

Armor King walked over to the elder and bowed respectfully at the older man.

"You are from the neighboring tribe are you not?" He asked Armor King; Armor King nodded.

"Yes." He answered simply.

"Can I do something for you?" The elder asked with genuine concern. Armor King nodded and flipped the hair from his face briefly.

"I was hoping you could spare a few of your young men," Armor King began. "The winter will be here soon and some of us are in need of wool and fur." Armor King explained; at this the elder nodded emphatically.

"Yes, so are we," The elder explained. "Would you lead the men to find some?" the Elder asked.

"I have no problem with that," Armor King answered. "I have hunted in these lands twice before I know the terrain." The elder smiled at the answer.

"Good," he answered. "There are a few boys who are in need of something to do. Come tomorrow in the square at sunrise and they will be waiting for you there." The elder decreed; Armor King bowed again.

"Thank you."

He left the elder in peace and went back to his settlement and put himself to sleep for the day of hunting to come.

He rose just before sunrise, when the night sky began to glow with the excitement of dawn and the morning air rose like a kind thought. He stretched bathed and woke his brother who would accompany them. Within an hour the sun was rising and they both went into the village and came to the town square. Waiting for them there were three boys all around the age of seventeen, they stood impatient as Armor King and his brother approached, when he came into sight one of the boys called to him.

"Yo pops," He said (he spoke entirely in Spanish, so this is a mere approximation of what was said) "You're late." Armor King looked up at the sky, which was half purple and half blue in the coming sunrise.

"The sun is still rising," Armor King countered. "I'd say we're on time." (Armor King spoke in Spanish to the boys too) The lead boy with the mouth, waved him off.

"Too old to know what's a proper sunrise," he joked to the other two's delight. "You sure you wouldn't rather go knitting?" They all had a laugh, from behind Armor King his brother spoke.

"I can't do this." He said with growing rage. "Have fun" He turned around back to the settlement, Armor King frowned.

"What's the matter grandpa?" The same boy called to the brother. "Goin' back to bed?" The boys laughed again. Armor King turned to see his brother's reaction but, the brother simply stopped for a moment, not facing them, took a breath and walked on. The boys continued laughing.

"Alright," Armor King interjected, he looked at the boys. They looked healthy, especially the one with big mouth. The four of them would be a fine hunting party, Armor King surmised. "Let's get your names" He suggested, the other two boys stepped up and stood straight (obviously some manners and respect had been driven into them)

"I'm Arturo," the first boy, who was also the shortest, answered.

"I'm Tallsun" the second boy answered. He was a handsome boy, it bothered Armor King, he looked too handsome to be any good with his hands. The third boy said nothing but, stared at Armor King with a skeptical look in his eyes.

"What's _your_ name?" The third boy asked him; this boy was muscular, he must have spent a good amount of time working out. Armor King frowned, of course the one who looked the most helpful was the most trouble.

"What does it matter?" Armor king asked. "You will refuse to call me by any other name besides 'gramps', 'pops' or something similar." Armor King answered; at this the third, muscular boy laughed.

"That's true pops." he laughed; Armor King sighed.

"Should I call you 'son' or something?" Armor King asked; but the third boy shook his head and smiled.

"You can call me Rey." the boy answered; Armor King nodded.

"Alright," The sun was starting to shine. "Let's move out."

The man and the three boys walked in the sun, which began to bake them within the first hour, for a few hours before Armor King ordered them to stop. There was nothing to see in any given direction, save a rock formation but, Armor King looked around anyway.

"What's the matter pops?" Rey asked. "Forgot your glasses?" The other boys chuckled, Tallsun louder than the other. Armor King ignored the quip and continued to look around, he raised his head and smelled the air and tugged on his own hair.

"Stay here." He demanded to the boys as he walked off to the rock formation and then behind it, disappearing from sight. When he was gone for a couple of minutes the boys got restless.

"What is with this guy?" Arturo asked to Rey, Rey didn't turn from where Armor King vanished.

"I don't know, he's weird." Rey answered; Tallsun smacked Rey on the back, so that the boy stumbled forward.

"Are you worried about him?" Tallsun joked; Rey turned to him and gave him a look.

"Why would I be worried about him?" Rey asked. "He's your boyfriend" with that Tallsun jumped towards Rey playfully and they wrestled each other to the ground. Within moments they were both in a complicated position with Rey pulling and Tallsun howling in pain.

"Alright, alright!" Tallsun yelled at the top of his lungs; Rey pulled harder and then released him.

"You should've known better" Rey said getting up from the stone ground. "No one can beat me at wrestling I am Ki-"before the boy could finish boasting a ferocious roar came from the rock formation and they turned startled in its direction. Standing there was a wolf, a large one. Graying near the bottom but, still black haired on top it looked at each of the three boys and jumped from the formation to the ground in front of them. It growled at them quietly and looked from one to the other, as if unsure about what exactly to do. Arturo and Tallsun took out their hatchets and held them shaking but, Rey didn't bother to move, he only stayed watching the predator as it watched them. It snarled louder and then bit at the air in Rey's direction and then started towards him.

"Rey move!" Arturo hissed at the boy but, he stayed still watching the monster. They're eyes were locked and then the attack was apparent, Rey jumped back in anticipation but, just as he did another howl came from the same formation. This wasn't a wolf though, on the formation Armor King yelled at the top of his lungs and jumped from the formation and landed squarely on the beast back.

Tallsun and Arturo cursed instinctively at the assault. Armor King's body twisting with the wolf throwing up dirt so that the action was barely visible but, still totally frightening, the wolf snarled and growled loudly as they battled and eventually they reached a point where they moved slowly. Armor King on his back holding the wolf legs, on _it's _back, Rey saw the maneuver and recognized it as a wrestling move, he had done it on plenty of men himself but, the way the older man did was more powerful and against a beast like that, it was amazing. Armor King grunted as the wolf attempted to turn its head to bite him but, with no success. With a sudden jerk Armor King pulled his arms to either side and two snaps echoed in the air followed by a pathetic whimper. Armor King unwrapped his legs from the beast torso and pushed the creature off of him. Immediately the wolf tried to stand but, it's front legs were broken and it stumbled on it's face several times crying as it did, suddenly the creature was pathetic in the boys' eyes, no longer inducing fear but, sympathy. Armor King stood and looked at the boys.

"You alright?" He asked; the boys nodded and he went behind the wolf, who tried to turn but, could not. He leaned his stomach on it's back and wrapped his arms around it's neck. "I thank you for your sacrifice. I am sorry you had to suffer." he whispered into its ear quietly; then he closed his eyes and snapped the creature's neck. He stood up and the creature fell down, he looked at the boys.

"Alright you can carry it back."

On the way back the boys carried the wolf's body back, along the way they caught a few rabbits and birds as well. Tallsun and Arturo talked at length about Armor King's theatrics with the wolf but, Rey said nothing the entire walk back. When they returned to the village a few people had gathered to see them. Armor King's brother was one of them, the boys instantly boasted about Armor King's feats in the desert, Armor King left without saying anything. Before he left though Rey called out to him.

"Yo pops!" He finally spoke, the sound of his voice somewhat startled Armor King after the boy having been quiet for so long, Armor King turned to face him. "You a wrestler?" He asked; Armor King looked surprise at the question but, nodded.

"I am." He answered; the boy seemed vexed by the admission and said nothing for a moment.

"Tomorrow," He started. "I challenge you to a match tomorrow, at noon right here." the boy said; he had a very serious air about him. It was strange but, armor king didn't think much of it.

"See ya there." And the brothers walked back to the settlement.

The next day Armor King showed up to the town square before noon; his brother came (as he always did, with matches) and Tallsun, Arturo and some other boys had gathered there too. When Armor King came into the town he wore his wrestling mask. A grey leopard's mask, it was too hot to wear his full suit with the armor, so he wore some slacks and no shirt. To his surprise people seemed to recognize his mask but, looked at it strangely. When the boy Rey came out he saw why.

The boy came out similarly with no shirt and slacks and wore a traditional leopard's mask. The sight made Armor King laugh to himself, the boy was an impersonator.

"I see we share a common thread" Armor King spoke, Rey shook his head and sneered.

"There is only one true 'King' and it's me." Rey/King demanded. "I haven't lost a match ever." Armor King scoffed and heard his brother do the same.

"You're too young to even know what that mask represents" Armor King explained. "It's much more than some wrestling matches and wins. It's pride, service and-"

"Spare me the lecture pops." Rey/King interrupted; Armor King's patience was being tried.

"Have it your way," Armor King sighed. "Let's begin"

The match began and the two Kings circled each other for a long moment and then went into their battle. Their two bodies locked into each other furiously, the arms locked into place as both pulled and pushed to get the other to submit. To his surprise the boy was precise in his form and powerful, Armor King had fought many wrestlers and he knew when one was good and when one needed more training and this young boy had form of gold. With a twist of his body Armor King flung the boys body to the side and onto the ground. The other boys howled in delight seeing the heat of the battle, from their reaction no one had ever gotten this far with 'King' before, for a moment Armor King reveled in that feeling.

King was up quickly and contorted his body into Armor King's midsection and within seconds had the man up in the air and slammed him back to the ground. He attempted to chain these throws together but, the Armor King was wise to his plan of attack and pushed the boy off with a superior might. King tried to tackle Armor King but, failed to when Armor King simply knocked the boy back several times. After all he was stronger and more powerful than the young boy and King knew this.

King came in for another tackle and Armor King went to push him back again but, to his surprise the young boy threw himself to the ground and swept his legs off the ground. Armor King fell hard and no sooner than when he touched the ground King was attempting to get him into a figure eight leg lock. In a moment, that felt longer but, was no longer than a second or two, Armor King admired the boy's ability, it wasn't an easy trick to pull off and he was doing well. As the young boy grabbed his leg forcibly Armor King kicked free of the grip with ease and wrapped his leg around the young boys neck and applied the maximum amount of pressure needed to make the boy sweat but, not to really hurt him. The boys really went wild at this turn of events and screamed at the top of their lungs. King writhed under the older man's grip and for a moment lost his cool but, not long after he calmed and thought, it was then that he took his hand and smashed at a muscle on Armor King's leg with all his might.

Armor King immediately released his grip unwilling to take another blow like that, the two masked wrestlers got up and circled each other once more.

"You're not half bad pops." King admitted rubbing his neck lightly. Armor King smiled under his mask and rubbed his leg.

"Same to you." And with that the men were both back into the battle. Armor King search for an opening and to his surprise saw a common flaw in the uncommon wrestlers stance. Armor King could tell the boy was going to do something with his legs by the way the boy was pushing his legs into the ground. His muscles bulged as he did it and the boy seemed totally unaware that he was doing it. Armor King smiled under the mask again before darting forward in a crouch ready to avoid King's next move.

King threw his body off the ground and in an instant positioned himself into a drop-kick. Armor King hadn't seen this coming, he expected a kick or something of that nature, King couldn't lift his body that far off the ground and with Armor King crouching the blow landed square on his face, smashing his left eye. The older man fell to the ground and squirmed in a horrible pain, the young man hit the ground and stood quickly and seeing his opponent on the ground smiled and raised his hand in the air claiming victory.

Armor King's brother bolted past the younger King but, not before smashing an open palm into his shoulder causing the young King to fall to the ground in pain. He slid next to his brother and turned him over.

"Are you ok?" The brother asked, Armor King growled in pain but, eventually spoke.

"It's my eye!" He exclaimed, he held his hand over his left eye and his brother removed the hand to see. To his surprise the eye was totally read as if it had been painted over. The brother turned to the younger King and kicked him square in the chest and prepared for a larger brawl but, Armor King called him to stop. He stood and held his hand over his eye for a moment before moving it and going to his brother.

"Enough!" another voice called, they all turned and the village elder stood there, wide eyed and furious. "Have you gone mad?" He asked; the boys stood silent, he walked over to Armor King and grabbed his face and looked into his damaged eye.

"I'm sorry, it was a friendly match I shouldn't have-" Armor King spoke.

"You have done _nothing_ wrong!" the Elder spoke; he continued to hold his face but, looked past him to King. "You!" he sneered at the boy. "This man comes here and offers help and you would attack him so viciously and then gloat about it!" The elder yelled; King stood on his feet.

"He shouldn't have fought the King!" the boy boasted; the elder moved past Armor King and to the Boy and grabbed his arm.

"You are to leave here and _never_ return," the elder hissed. "Do you understand?" King took off his mask and his face was again of a boy, confused.

"What?" he asked.

"You have done nothing but, start trouble and cause havoc, I want you to leave!" The elder yelled; the boy snatched from the elder and snarled his face.

"Who cares?" the boy snapped. "I am the King, people will come from near and far to see me, I don't need you!" and he turned walked past the elder and Armor King. When he passed he looked at Armor King and Armor King looked back, even through the sheer red of his eye he could see nothing but, pure hate.

Armor King and his people didn't stay the season, After King went west the villagers went east and He didn't think he'd see the boy again. But today he had and all the feelings came rushing back, soon he would show the boy the true power and might of someone who wore the jaguar mask.

The sun was beaming and Armor King climb onto the back of the truck..

It was only a matter of time.


	19. Prototype Jack

**Prototype Jack:**

Kazi Sumon filed through a long list of papers, scanning them briefly with his eyes before he put them away face down. Finally he found the paper he was looking for and read through it slowly. Heihachi had left the country to do some press and meetings about the 'King of Iron Fist' tournament, so Kazi was in charge of keeping up with the list of participants and where their funding came from. Since Kazi had been there at Heihachi's side he knew what names to look out for and was to be wary of certain companies that may have sponsored fighters. Any company that was directly a rival of the Zaibatsu was to be red flagged first and then a full background check was to be given under the name of the participant entered in the tournament. So far there was nothing too interesting, fighters from all over the world, a pair from America, one specializing in Judo the other in Jeet Kune Do, a handful from Mexico, including two from Mexico with similar names and two people who identified as being apart of the elusive Manji Clan (they were red flagged immediately for their clan's thieving ways). There were others but, they seemed like small time fighters who wouldn't make it past the first round, registration wasn't done however so there was likely to be a few more.

Half-way down the page a name caught his eye, rather the name of a country caught his eye: 'Shambala". Shambala wasn't the name of a real country, or rather it was but, no one had seen it in hundreds of years, like Atlantis. So to put the name down was either a joke or someone trying to catch the Zaibatsu's eye, furthermore the age was listed as three years old it was possible that someone had entered the contest under a false name as a joke but, in order to register they'd have to pay the sponsorship fee and who would pay that much money to jest?

The name of the participant really caught his eye and even made his heart skip a beat, he paused and red the name, age and country again and again. He was sure of what he was reading, the name of the participant was Jack. This sparked interest in Kazi quite a bit, what if it was a JACK created from the stolen plans? Kazi scanned and saw the sponsorship fee was paid electronically and so he turned to his computer and entered the name of the participant and looked up where the payment had come from and to his surprise one name was there: 'Daniel Herenger'.

At this Kazi really perked up, he recognized the name as the man hiring people to kill Heihachi, it was starting to make sense, what better plan was there? Use a false name enter their version of the completed JACK into the tournament, defeat Heihachi and take over the Zaibatsu. Kazi smirked at the thought, it was a good plan but, luckily they had foreseen it happening before hand. The possibility of a completed JACK weighed on the mind of Heihachi because it could be manufactured and release before the Zaibatsu's however; Dr. Abel had been working diligently on the Zaibatsu's version of the JACK and essentially one model was completed.

Kazi considered calling Heihachi but, the Mishima had put him in charge for a reason, he didn't intend for Kazi to call for every little detail, he expected Kazi to make decisions and choices on his own and here was his chance. Kazi picked up the phone and dialed out to the secretary a small pause punctuated the action and then she came on.

"Could you patch me through to Rochefort Enterprises?" Kazi asked; the secretary obliged and within a moment the phone was ringing. On the other end he was on with Rochefort Enterprises, a company that mined oil fields and somewhat of a competitor with the Mishima Heavy Industries but, Heihachi remained good friends with the current C.E.O. "Hi, this is Kazi Sumon from the Mishima Zaibatsu, yes, I would like to thank you." He waited another moment and was on the phone with someone of importance. "Hi, I'm calling to ask you for a favor, yes I'd like to ask you for a favor, yes," he laughed, on the other line the someone said something humorous. "I was wondering if you would sponsor a participant in our little fighting tournament on behalf of the Zaibatsu."

The conversation didn't last very long and Kazi was pleased with the results, afterwards he left the Zaibatsu and drove down to Heavy Industries, it was a Tuesday so he knew Abel was there and though he hated talking to Abel, especially alone but, he had to do it today.

When he arrived Abel was walking around barking orders at people; Kazi came up beside him quietly and began speaking.

"Abel I need your help" Kazi began, the old scientist turned to the young man and peered at him from behind his glasses, either pretending or actually recognizing him. For a moment he looked puzzled and then showed his recognition by rolling his eyes and moving on.

"Why do you insist on bothering me during my work Mr. Sumon?" Abel asked; Kazi shook his head and kept in step with the scientist.

"Would you that I show up at your apartment after work?" Kazi asked; at this the scientist scoffed and waved away the young man.

"Mr. Sumon, I am _very_ busy," Abel sneered. "If there's something you want to discuss I would suggest you find a way to summarize it in the next thirty seconds" Abel spoke quickly.

"The Zaibatsu wants to use the JACK." Kazi explained; Abel turned back to the young man and studied his face in silence, checking to see if there was any hint of humor in it.

As Abel had predicted the first JACK to meet Abel's approval was completed in the last year, neither Heihachi or Kazi had seen it but, there were detailed reports from Abel about it's apparent success. Abel however held back that the final touches needed to be put into effect, in Abel's reports they were referred to as 'Cosmetic and Aesthetic repairs'. Abel refused to have the machine sold in its current condition but, expressed the need for the machine to be used practically to test its abilities.

The graying scientist held his spectacles when he talked.

"For your little fighting game?" He asked with malice but, a hint of intrigue. Kazi nodded.

"Yes, the tournament is going to begin in the next couple of weeks and we think it's a good time to see what it can do." Kazi decided to not mention the other JACK being entered as it would probably only upset Abel.

"Does Heihachi agree with this?" Abel asked; his eyes filled with incredulity.

"Of course, otherwise I wouldn't be here" Kazi lied again; the truth would only upset Abel and it was a minor issue. Again Abel watched the young man's face looking for signs of humor.

"I don't see why not," Abel agreed. "This little moronic thing you have set up shouldn't even prove to be a minor problem for the JACK" Abel admitted; Kazi silently let out a sigh of relief.

"Good," he said but, something weighed on his mind. "Can I see it?" Kazi asked; the scientist smiled devilishly.

"I suppose so; I've been hiding it for a long time." Abel gestured for the young man to follow and he lead him through a large hallway, through a series of doors, security checks, identification checks, armor plated doors, conveyer belts, pumping iron bars and others until finally they were in a large room with some engineers and a table standing up right.

"It's alright" Abel waved to the other men. "Turn it loose." The men went over to the table and twisted some joints and then walked away. Abel turned his face to the left, to talk back to Kazi. "Stay here." Abel walked a few feet forward and then spoke. "JACK report"

With those words a sudden commotion commenced from the upright table. From there a man or something of the sort sprung to life and it looked around and then began to walk towards the two men. It stood nearly seven feet tall and for something of that size and weight it moved somewhat quietly towards them. It was shining metallic, covered in human clothes, a green undershirt, camouflaged pants, a belt, boots a military hat and dark sunglasses. In the dim light, Abel turned to Kazi with a smile and Kazi couldn't help but, smirk.

"Meet Prototype JACK" Abel introduced.


	20. Ganryu

**Ganryu:**

"I just don't know" the business man said to Ganryu. "We just don't have the money right now." Ganryu frowned and looked down at the floor trying to think of an appropriate response. This was the tenth time he had been denied the chance to become Yokozuna and own his own sumo wrestling ring. Times were rough and even though he was one of the top five sumo wrestlers in China no one wanted to loan the money to bestow the honor on to him.

There were other ways, he could keep fighting until a tournament arrived that would offer the position as a prize or he could make the money himself and open a dojo and pronounce himself Yokozuna. Both sounded easy enough except no tournaments offered the prize anymore (corruption in sumo wrestling had grown to epic proportions, no leaders wanted to risk their titles and bankrolls) and he could never hold on to that much money at once. The pricey, glamorous casinos in China had a deceptive hold on Ganryu and whenever he made enough money to be of worth he spent it trying to make more in the casinos.

In fact he was in debt to several of the casinos and was forced to work odd jobs for the owners every once in a while, that or throw a match here and there. Times weren't as kind to him as they were a decade ago, when he was the top sumo wrestler and the youngest at that. As he aged into his mid twenties people seemed less amazed by his skill and more interested if he was going to participate in theatrics. The theatrics were fine and all but, the problem was that Ganryu wasn't really creative, when he got into sumo wrestling it was pretty simple: win the match. But in the years to follow it became more complicated, the audience wanted intrigue and story, twist and turns in the match where usually the winner was apparent in the first thirty seconds (if the match lasted that long). As retaliation the agency offered some theatrics to follow, some wirings to make jumps more amazing or falls more dramatic, technically it was cheating and the production of the theatrics wasn't exactly of the highest caliber.

"What about fan sponsorship?" Ganryu asked remember the possibility. Fan sponsorship was when fans offered money to the wrestlers funds for a cause, it was practiced quite a bit and successful to a point, if Ganryu could make a good amount there, he could try and save the rest.

"Probably not going to happen" The business man frowned. "You're popular but, not that popular" the revelation was a blow to Ganryu's ego.

"That's not my fault." he responded meekly; and to a degree it wasn't the sumo's fault. The truth was that the forced theatrics were noticed by the audience as fake and it made Ganryu look like he was cheating, so his popularity took a steep nose dive in the last couple of months. He hadn't wanted to do them in the first place but, in the sumo world wrestlers weren't allowed to address the public aside from well planned press events. The business man showed some sympathy in his eyes and patted Ganryu on the shoulder.

"Maybe next year."

Ganryu didn't let it get him down too much, he quickly found himself at the casino's bar drinking. He hadn't enough money to gamble but the slot machines looked so shiny and primed to win today. In fact as he sat there drinking his fifth drink several musical chimes alerted the casino of jackpot wins. He sighed and downed the rest of the drink. 'Why couldn't it have been me?' he thought to himself, not so much in a self pitying way but, more in an actual questioning way. Perhaps there was something he was doing wrong, maybe he should change his way of dress, a Feng Shui kind of change.

Ever since he was young he wanted to be a Yokozuna, it was the highest form of being a sumo. A wonderful tradition in which the wrestler became the master and hosted matches for others, it was somewhat of a sign of respect and honor. Everything cost money though and he didn't have enough of it, Ganryu had never considered paying to be a Yokozuna, it was just something that (used) to happen when a sumo got so good and popular that he needed to be rewarded. Ganryu had reached that peak years ago, having the most watched televised sumo match ever _and_ he was the victor. He was positive he was going to be honored in a ceremony and become a Yokozuna but, a week went by and nothing became of anything, some fun autographs, kind words but, no ceremony, no Yokozuna.

At first he just let it go, thinking that it would happen in a matter of time but, when his matches started to decrease and fewer people were booking him to show up to dojos he started wondering if he was missing something. Of course that's when he stated the gambling, which at first (like everything else destructive) started out good, he was making money living in a rather high society and others started noticing his money but, eventually the slots took their revenge and started taking more money from him than giving it out. 'At least I'm not the kind of guy that the bartender knows by name' Ganryu thought.

"Hey Ganryu" the bartender called; he sunk into his chair slightly. He looked up and met the bartender eye to eye. "When's your next match?" He asked; Ganryu sighed. It was a good question, at this rate he wasn't going to have another match for some time.

"I'm not sure," Ganryu said; he picked up his drink and tried to down it but, he already had and the cup was empty, he singled for another one.

"Oh cause I'd love to see you go against that new guy uh, what's his name?" The bartender, filled the cup and handed it to Ganryu. "B. Yonda!" Ganryu cringed at the name and put his lips in the drink and blew a little, causing some bubbles to stir. "He's got nothing on you!" the bartender added, whilst pointing to the television where Yonda was having a fight.

"Thanks," Ganryu simply muttered; the B. Yonda character was his replacement essentially, they even looked similar, except Yonda was younger and more festive, like a cartoon character. Ganryu despised him so, he watched the television with disdain unable to look away at the fight. A few years ago that was him and here he was now sitting at a bar loathing his younger version. The sumo on the television performed a move which made several of the patrons howl in delight, Ganryu sneered, he suddenly felt indignant. "I used to do that" he said to the others at the bar, he felt compelled to say more, the drinks were starting to make him brave again. He could deny it but, why? "I _still_ can do that," he added. "If I hadn't done it first do you think B. Yonda," He said the name so harshly it made several of the patrons jump. "would have even thought to do it? No, he's just a phony, not like me," He pointed to himself with his thumb with a confident, boasting energy. "I'm the real thing!"

The other patrons watched this scene silently and for a moment after it was finished they stared blankly for a few moments before turning their attention back to the television. The bartender seemed to be the only one still interested in Ganryu, who had no sunken back into his seat further.

"I believe you," The bartender spoke. "To be honest I don't think B. Fonda even plays by the rules," the bartender went on shining a glass that had no chance of getting clean with the simple use of a dishrag. "Something about him just screams cheater, that's probably why he has so many sponsors." At this Ganryu perked up slightly.

"Really?" he asked, alcohol was just like the slots, they gave briefly and took furiously.

"Yeah," the bartender wisely gave up on the glass. "he's not my type at all, you'll always be the best to me!" this lifted Ganryu's spirits a bit and for that moment he was able to look at the television in hopes of feeling more worthy than B. Yonda but, when he looked at the screen there was a commercial on. The flashing red lights caught his attention but the figure of one million dollars caught his eye even more.

"Turn that up!" Ganryu demanded.

The commercial announced the 'King of Iron Fist' tournament or the equivalent nickname: "Tekken" was going to be held in a couple of weeks. The grand prize was one million American dollars (or the equivalent amount in other currencies) and a chance to take control of the Mishima Zaibatsu. It was a welcome turn of events, all he needed to do was train a little and win the tournament and he could have enough money to open his own dojo and become Yokozuna!

Ganryu jump out of his chair and smiled brightly, (he also swooned dramatically as the alcohol hadn't left his body yet) he knew were the nearest registration meeting was at, he would go down there at once and register. He laughed out loud (much to the surprise of an older woman walking by) and continued to the exit.

"Hey Ganryu!" The bartender called after him. "What about these drinks!" Ganryu still smiling marched on.

"Put it on my tab!" he called back; the bartender frowned.

"We don't have a tab"


	21. Michelle Chang

**Michelle Chang**

Standing in front of the grave she didn't say anything. The wind blew solemnly around here, wrapping her hair to his neck and pushing her tears down her face faster than normal. The itching feel of the tears caused her to wipe them away slowly and break out of her momentary reverie. Hey eyes focused on the tombstone again and she re-read the words on it, hoping that maybe the name would have changed and she wouldn't be mourning her father. But it didn't change and his name was still there and her heart wasn't mended any.

How did it get this way?

It all started years ago when the tribe had agreed to let some men from a museum perform an excavation on their land. The elders were split about the choice but, in the end the money was too compelling of a reason to pass up, Michelle father hadn't been opposed to the excavation immediately but, when the digging started to move further and further past the point they had agreed upon he had gotten increasingly nervous.

At the time Michelle had no idea why her father was getting so upset about the excavation aside from the fact that the diggers hadn't kept to their word but, there was something else for the first time in her life her father seemed _scared_, scared of the men digging. Of course his fear was always momentary and vanished as soon as Michelle came into the room but, she saw it and wondered why.

Eventually she forgot about it and watched the excavation like all the other kids (training every day as well) wondering if they were going to find some old fossils or maybe bones hidden by dogs some time before (upsetting the dogs naturally)but day in and day out nothing was found, the excavators were nice though and Michelle would talk to them but, never found out if they were looking for something in particular.

One day there was a lot of commotion at the site and all the kids were told to stay away. The excavators were in a flurry of emotions, Michelle knew they found something interesting and within hours had taken off to the city to get equipment to unearth it completely. It wasn't until that afternoon when her father and some of the men came back did she know that something was wrong, when he heard the excavators had found something his face was not of excitement and happiness like the foreign men, instead he looked disturbed and angry.

That night he stayed out with her uncle and argued with the excavators for hours, she couldn't hear exactly what was being said, her mother was purposely singing loudly to block out the angry noises but, she did remember hearing him say: "They _cannot_ take it"

The next day when Michelle woke her father had already left for town to argue more with the museum people about the nature of their find. So she stayed at the excavation site and stared at the deep hole. For a couple of hours she wondered how they were able to dig so deep, the earth was so tough after one point it was hard to imagine that they were able to dig through it; after that thought failed to entertain her any more, she wondered what they had found down there that had gotten her father so mad. It was that thought that led her to mischief, she knew she shouldn't do it but, it was too enticing she just _had_ to know what was down there.

The excavators had left the hole unattended and hadn't moved the moving ledge that was used to ride down to the bottom of the site. All one had to do was pull the rope on the side and release slack to be lowered down, then pull the rope accordingly to pull oneself back up. It was simple enough to do, too simple not to, so when everyone went in for lunch at the hottest part of the day Michelle began down the excavation hole.

Within five minutes of going down she was scared; it was far more darker than she thought, she looked up and could see the bright sun but, it felt almost a whole world away, for a second she considered calling the whole thing off but, when she looked around she saw a helmet with a flashlight mounted on top, she put it on (it was much too big for her head so it slightly obscured her view) and turned the light on. Another five minutes of descent and she finally touched the bottom of the site. She sighed again and stepped off the platform keeping the light on the ground to see where she was going, it wasn't flat so she had to be careful not to trip over herself, in the corner she could see a cloth set up like a small tent obscuring a portion of the cavern, she surmised whatever they had found was there.

Carefully she stepped around and got closer to the small tent and when she was close enough to look in she moved the tapestry over and suddenly something shone in her light back at her. She hadn't seen anything like it before; it was amazing. It was about the size of a palm and had five gems inside, a ruby, an aquamarine, an amethyst and a diamond dotted the four sides around the much larger emerald. The pendant seemed to be crafted almost entirely of gold above each of the four adorning stones was a segment of the gold that was carved out, maybe as if to be worn.

Her eyes were entranced on the beauty of the pendant but, also at how old this artifact must have been. she could suddenly understand the immense interest in this piece but, she couldn't understand her father's anger, he seemed to want to keep the pendant in the ground, he argued vehemently to 'keep it where it was'. Michelle reached out to the pendant and let her fingers run across the surface, it was still somewhat dirty but, the feel of the gold was still smooth and appealing but, when she touched it, there was an uneasiness that she hadn't felt before. So much so that she drew away from it and the feeling evaporated, she touched it again and it returned.

"MICHELLE!"A voice boomed from above, almost as if the voice of God, bouncing off the rocks and echoing in the vastness of the cavern. Her heart jumped twice, once from the original scream and again from the reverberation. She knew the voice well and looked up slowly, above her in a tiny speck she could see her father and even from that distance she could see a mix of horror and anger in his face. "Get back here now!"

She obeyed and climbed onto the levy and pulled, her father assisted from above, she reached the top within seven minutes and met his face of disapproval. She looked away from his eyes.

"I'm sorry" she said quickly but; he didn't say anything he just looked at her with that face. She couldn't even tell what the look meant anymore it was just sort of a mix of negative emotions blended into one. She looked away again and repeated: "I'm sorry." Within a minute he spoke.

"That was dangerous, what you did," he spoke, she repeated 'I'm sorry' again in a lower tone. "You could have been hurt or killed." He parted her hair from her face and his face softened. "I'm glad you weren't" he smiled and kissed her on her forehead.

"What was that thing down there?" Michelle couldn't help but ask; his smiled turned down a bit, not into a frown but into a knowing smile. Expecting the question.

"It's something our family has kept hidden for generations" He answered simply; she nodded and recalled that uneasy feeling she felt when she touched the pendant.

"Is it dangerous?" she asked; and he looked her square in the eye, with all the seriousness in the world and said:

"Yes."

In the next few weeks Michelle's father lost the fight to keep the pendant buried, within days more people came and took it out of the hole and took it to town. News reporters came and filmed the transfer, Michelle still didn't understand what the big deal was but, she watched intrigued, especially because her father seemed to get more and more anxious the longer the pendant stayed away. Michelle noticed him pacing more and staying out later, her mother told her not to worry too much that he would calm down but, it didn't seem like it.

Finally one day he announced he was going to go see the pendant at the exhibit (an agreement had been made that natives could enter free and see the pendant) and he was gone, Michelle and her mother decided to stay back but, when there was nothing to do they decided to meet her father at the exhibit and see it with him. They left and took a truck into the city and it was always an adventurous time going to the city, from the outskirts one could see the museum all in glass and sprawling over the city.

It wasn't as exciting as they would have liked it to have been when, they arrived they couldn't get in because Heihachi Mishima was visiting the exhibit. Michelle's mother wanted to stay in the city to do some shopping but, Michelle insisted on going back home and so she went alone.

What she saw when she returned was eerie, no one was around and her house had been broken into, quickly she ran to the back of the house to peer into the window and see if she could find a culprit. She did not and so she entered the house cautiously, the entire house was tossed upside down, everything was everywhere but, nothing seemed to be taken. She sifted through the mess until she reached the living room and saw the worse thing of all.

"Michelle…" he whispered, totally different than the call she heard while in the hole. He looked weak and his right hand was draped around his stomach, where blood was pouring. Michelle darted forward and slid to him, like a baseball player attempting to steal a base.

"Dad!" she yelled and took his arm gently and removed is seeing the bullet wound. "What happened?" she demanded. He weakly shook his head.

"I did something foolish," he admitted. "I stole the pendant from the museum." he explained further. "It is the single thing keeping Toshin from awakening, I could risk the chance of doing that," he spoke slowly and in pain but, clearly. "When I took it, some of the security saw me, I fled here and there were men already here. I thought," he winced in pain. "I thought they were from the museum so I pulled a weapon out, they saw it and thought I was going to attack them, so they fired on me," He attempted to stand up more straight. "They seemed scared, they were young boys, they wanted the pendant but, couldn't find it." He was breathing more dramatically. "Here," He pushed something into her hand and she suddenly felt uneasy, she opened her hand and beheld the pendant. "keep it with you always, don't let anyone know you have it, not even your mother." He demanded; he was going to die, she knew it, it was something that couldn't be change.

"Who did this?" she asked. "If it wasn't from the museum where were they from?" she asked desperately; in his final breath he held her hand and said:

"The Mishima Zaibatsu"

Back in front of his grave, Michelle cried again, in a fist she held the pendant close to her heart, remember what he had said to her. In the other she clutched something else, something that was, at that time, just as important to her. She'd never forget or forgive the Mishima Zaibatsu for what they did to her father and there was only one man who could have given the order.

Heihachi Mishima.

She would make him pay with his life, it was the only form of retribution that Michelle could think of. She would do in the presence of the pendant her father's last gift to her, she clutched it so, it pained her hands and she felt as if she might break it, and in her other hand she clutched something else just as strong.

In her left hand were her registration papers for the 'King of Iron Fist' tournament.


	22. JACK

**JACK**

Adorned in a business suit with horizontal stripes, 'Daniel Herenger' walked into room it was dark, the window was shaded so that the sun was blocked out mostly. Behind on his desk a woman sat with one legged crossed and didn't bother to turn in his direction when he walked into the room. Seeing her made his heart jump slightly and in a nervous habit smoothed his tie with his left hand onto his chest. As he closed the door he felt a cool breeze whip around his body and linger there for a moment, the feel of the wind snatched his mind away from his current position, back into the recent past…

_One week prior…_

The plane was heated so the sudden snap of cold air bit at his skin like an angry snake and remained there for the duration of his time outside. Instinctively Herenger pulled the ends of his coat closer together and held them there as he walked down the ramp onto the runway. He was excited for his meeting but, displeased he had to fly out to Samara, Russia personally to achieve it, the winter was coming and the air was intense with its warning. Herenger hadn't dressed appropriately; he knew it was going to be cold but, not this cold, not to mention he looked like a complete tourist, everyone was in fur hates and expensive large coats. He questioned over and over again in his mind why this couldn't have been done on the phone? He was only going to be in town for the meeting, they could have spared the time and money. To get into the country he needed five different permissions in order to get into the country it took too much of his time, he was running an entire business too but, the Russian's didn't seem to care about that at all.

Either way it would be worth it if the meeting went well, his contacts here assured him that their superiors were interested in what he had to offer, he clutched his briefcase in anticipation this is what he had been waiting for.

He looked around the runway for a familiar place but didn't see one. Why couldn't he have landed in Moscow, with an airport and not just some random landing strip? The Russians seemed to want to keep his visit a secret but, from who? He appreciated their caution (because he too wanted to avoid the international spotlight. If Heihachi Mishima knew what he was doing it would all be ruined) but, he didn't want to get between two rival Russian authorities, he simply didn't have the time for that sort of annoyance.

He could see a jeep heading in his direction and he knew it was coming for him. The truth of the matter was that Russia was in a bad state, the current government was being undermined by a group of rebels that wished to either secede or change major portions of the current government. With the fall of the Soviet Union a few years ago, reorganizing the Russian government to fit the new look of Europe and its place as a world power was more of a challenge than anyone could have imagined. Crime had escalated to dangerous points so much so that most of the expansive country had to be put under a curfew restriction. While the government fought with the rebels everyone in the middle scrambled to get what they could when they could, even if it meant breaking the law.

And so the government needed help and Herenger knew this, they would need what he had to offer and the wheels would be put into a motion that couldn't be stopped. He chuckled to himself happy with his plans.

The jeep pulled up violently and stopped in front of Herenger with a screech. Inside the jeep there were two men he had never seen before, not the contacts he was supposed to meet with. He stiffened in his spot for a moment, sensing an impending kidnapping.

"You aren't-"he started in protest but, the man in the passengers side seat interrupted coldly.

"I am Petrovski this is Makaroff," he began; both names meant something to Herenger. "Your friends are busy with Government work, you will be accompanied by us." Petrovski explained.

Alexander Petrovski and Dimitri Makaroff were the two superiors Herenger was supposed to meet with later, so being picked up by them was quite a surprise. Both men had been generals in the Soviet Republic Army and had lead them to victory several times. When the Cold War reached its height they served as 'enforcers' traveling all of Russia and the surrounding countries to ensure the people kept to the ideals of the U.S.S.R. They were in some ways spies, sometimes threatening other countries to fall in line, both were dangerous men and the sheer look of them could make people change their entire ideals.

After the fall of the U.S.S.R. they were reorganized into the defense council, the glamour of their work had them finding ways to defend themselves against other countries but, the majority of their work had them focusing on the crime within the country. Both were often deployed to the worse off areas of the country to keep order and stability. Makaroff commented: "It is shit work but, men like us enjoy any battlefield" and so they did their job with a reasonable amount of enjoyment.

Their enjoying of the work would dwindle in recent years, the crime had gotten to such a point that they were both stymied in their efforts. It wasn't as if they could just open fire on their own people and obliterate the criminals, something had to be done and the government wasn't paying close enough attention to their battles as they were to the American and Japanese economies.

So when Daniel Herenger, (whom upon first sight both men instantly his name was an alias of some sort) came with an offer to police the worst off portions of Russia effectively and cheaply they decided to hear his side of the story out. Both became frustrated with the nature of his offer would not be spelled out completely. Whatever it was that Herenger had he wouldn't say it outright to them, so this meeting had to be proposed to see what exactly the man had in mind to sell to them.

Herenger did of course worry about showing them the plans, the could easily run to the Japanese and tell them what they had seen but, as he climbed into the back of the truck, clutching his suitcase he knew they had no love for the Japanese and that what he had to offer was too good to pass up.

The truck sped forward and instantly Herenger began to regret this meeting. Sitting in the no roof jeep, speeding through the frigid Russian air he found his face refused to move. The Russian men didn't seem bothered at all, their faces didn't move either but, Herenger guessed this was because they didn't wish to move it, not out of some inability to do so.

"So what is it that you want to show us?" Makaroff called over the loud air rushing and not taking his eyes off the road; Herenger didn't feel this was a good time to talk, no only was it loud but, the cold was stupefying him.

"Isn't there someplace else," He began. "Namely, someplace warm where we can discuss this?" Herenger suggested.

"We've been talking to you via our contacts for some time now and we still don't have any ideas as to what you are going to propose. Our anxiousness is beginning to wane into restlessness." Petrovski answered; Herenger took note to how they spoke, both with thick Russian accents but, with more than acceptable English but, most importantly they seemed to speak with one brain. Not in a buffoon sort of fashion but, they seemed to be able to answer questions directed to the other without any confusion as to who should say what. As if they thought in tandem with each other.

"I understand but, what I'm going to show you has many small details and charts, graphs, documents," Herenger explained screaming at the top of his lungs . "It would be better if we could just sit down and go over everything, you'd be able to appreciate it more." Herenger explained.

Petrovski looked at Makaroff but, the second man didn't turn his face, no acknowledgement was needed, it was understood. Herenger saw the lack of exchange and understood as well but, within the hour (hopefully they wouldn't be driving too much longer) they would be very happy men.

Another half hour of driving was ahead of them and when it was completed they came to an old building that appeared to have been a bomb shelter. Herenger was unsatisfied with this meeting place as the two Russians got out of the jeep.

"This is it?" Herenger asked instinctively; Makaroff turned to him and Herenger regretted sounding so demanding but, to his surprise there was a degree, albeit minute, of understanding in the man's eyes.

"Unfortunately several of our colleagues have defected to the rebels' side," he began to explain. "Their surveillance technology is advance enough to cause caution." He concluded; Herenger looked at Petrovski anticipating the second man's further explanation of Makaroff's words.

"We assumed you wanted privacy and this is the most private session we can offer." he answered monotonously. Herenger climbed out of the jeep as well and followed the men into the shelter

To his surprise the inside was decorated as a surveillance center itself, most the equipment looked modern enough, so he felt more at ease being inside this place than the shack he imagined it would look like. The two men lead him down three flights of stairs and into a small meeting room. The Russians sat on side and gestured for him to sit on the other, her obeyed and when he sat Makaroff simply said:

"Go."

Herenger felt as if he was being timed and so he tried to move quickly but, the cold had stiffened up his joints and his fingers moved dumbly as if broken and on someone else's hand, He tried as well as he could and got the briefcase opened and laid out a series of papers in a specific order. This all took him a matter of minutes to which the Russians impatiently watched but, in the end he smiled and began to speak.

"Russia is in the grip of the biggest crime wave it has ever seen," he started. "Your neighboring countries are showing a loyalty that's not to your homeland. You need a quick and unique solution that will solve not only the problem of your interior issues but, one that will address what exterior problems your country has or may have in the future." He took on stack of papers and divided them in half handing each half to one of the men. "Look at those figures. Those are the expenses it would cost to implement my solution and yes I know that the beginning figures are high but, look how it decreased dramatically over a small period of time. Within a year and a half of production you will be pumping out quality products for dirt cheap." The two Russians looked at the figures impressed but, still confused as to what was being offered.

"What will we be producing?" Petrovski asked; Herenger shook his head.

"Allow me to continue," The Russians nodded in tandem and he passed them another series of papers. "Now look at these, these are reports of a state of the art computer program that has the ability to filter visual images and information into reusable sources of reference. Somewhat of an electronic memory but, even more interesting is that it needs no prompts, the program acts on itself when it is put in certain situations. An artificial intelligence that not only learns but, knows how to apply unique and fine details to dramatically and minutely different situations." He pushed his tie to his chest with his left hand. "As an example you could imagine the program coming across a closed door, pushing it fails but, pulling it works. When the program comes to another closed door it will pull first this time. Not amazing I know but, now imagine that the program comes across a _locked_ door. Neither pulling or pushing works, it will use its memory to recall knowledge of an unlocked door and apply the opposite to fit the situation, so it in turn assumes the door is locked, even though it has never encountered a locked door before _and_ it applies a solution to open the locked door." Herenger explained, the Russians seemed somewhat impressed but, looked at each other still unsure of what the point of this meeting was. Herenger took the last stack of papers and handed it to the men evenly.

"Now look at this," He paused as the men read the papers, it took a moment or two but; both men looked at Herenger after reading with astonished eyes. "Yes Gentlemen, It can be done."

"A mechanized soldier?" Petrovski asked; Herenger shook his head and smiled.

"No," Herenger said. "An enforcer," He appealed to their past; he couldn't help but, smirk, he had planned that line for a while. "An elite enforcer that can take order and make decisions in battle without needed to rest or eat and will _never_ run the risk of defection." Herenger explained; The two Russians read the papers and again and Makaroff shook his head.

"What makes you think we won't just take these plans and send you on your way?" Makaroff asked; Herenger smiled.

"Because I'm not offering you just the plans, I'm offering you _five_ completed machines." Herenger explained, the two Russians eyes widened at the words.

"You have already created some?" Petrovski asked.

"Yes and they are in fine form."

"Then why wouldn't you put them in force yourself?" Makaroff asked.

"I run a very small company, I can't afford to keep making these machines and if I did put them out it would draw too much attention from my competitors." Herenger explained; Petrovski looked up incredulously.

"What's the catch?" He asked; at that Herenger became very serious.

"I will not lie to you gentlemen," Herenger started. "My company did not create these plans, they were acquired by some other means." Herenger explained; The Russians seemed to understand this complexity and be somewhat at terms with it.

"Who are the originators of these," Petrovski looked at the papers. "JACKs?" He asked.

"The Mishima Zaibatsu" Herenger decided not to beat around the bush about it, there reaction to that bit of news would let him know if he stood a chance or not of selling the JACK program.

Both man reeled at the three words he said and looked at each other but, to Herenger's good fortune they didn't back away from the table and give up.

"You understand what you're asking us to do?" Makaroff asked; Herenger nodded.

"You now understand why I cannot produce the machines myself," Herenger started. "If I were to the Zaibatsu would be on top of me and my company before I could even think to act." Herenger explained.

"And you think we would fair any better?" Makaroff asked; Herenger nodded.

"Actually yes," Herenger began. "If the Russia government were to take the program on as their own the Mishima Zaibatsu would have to leverage the Japanese government to intervene, and with Heihachi Mishima's rivalry with the Yakuza and the other crime lords the Japanese government will be forced to choose their side." Herenger explained; Both Russian men seemed unconvinced.

"And what if they choose Heihachi Mishima?" Petrovski asked; Makaroff nodded.

"Then you would have made an ally of the Yakuza and others," Herenger answered; the Russians seemed to be losing interest. "And once you show them you wish to keep the program going they will do anything to get revenge or reign the Japanese government back in." Herenger went on. For a long moment no one said anything and their silence gave Herenger hope.

"You offer a pretty good deal" Petrovski spoke. "But, we have to decline." Makaroff didn't move, for two who hadn't conferred with another they were in complete agreement.

Herenger felt his heart fall to his feet.

"What?" He blurted out in total surprise. "But, why?"

"Its simple," Makaroff continued. "You're offering a product that we have no idea if it will work or not. It's too much of a gamble." He explained; Herenger's mind raced, he had to calm down there had to be an answer.

"What if I could prove it's superiority?" Herenger asked; the two Russian's seemed intrigued.

"How?" Petrovski asked. "We'd be automatically incriminated if you were to bring one of those things to Russian soil." He explained; Herenger pressed tie to his chest again.

"Heihachi Mishima is holding a fighting tournament," Herenger began. "I will enter the JACK as a contestant. I have no doubts that it will win the tournament, then you can make your choice." Herenger suggested; the two men nodded and didn't seem to need time to think.

"Fine at the completion of the Mishima's 'King of Iron Fist' tournament we will make our decision based on the JACKs performance in the tournament"

Herenger smiled.

Back in his office, in the present he sat down behind his desk and opened his drawer, he thought about the last couple of minutes. Coming back from the meeting room discussing the possible future of the JACKs with is board members a secretary came in and whispered in his ear:

"She's here." and he quickly got up and came into his office.

He felt around the drawer for something and as he did he spoke.

"Aside from your credentials, why do you think I should hire you?" On the other side of the desk, the blonde haired women took something her side and threw it on the table. It was the file he was feeling around in the drawer for.

"My credentials speak for themselves." She said.


	23. Nina Williams

**Nina Williams**

"My credentials speak for themselves." She said; the slap of the folder on the table filled the silence. Herenger took the folder and smiled, opened it and said:

"Well lets see…"

_Sometime Else…_

She walked hurriedly into the office building. Hair tied into a neat pony tail, glasses, black, tight pants that hugged her curves and an open blouse that revealed some (but not gratuitous) cleavage. As she passed the receptionist desk she flashed her pass without looking in the direction of the desk and continued on at the same pace. The click of her high-heels down the corridor were rhythmic and didn't pause as she reached the steps, the speed varied slightly as it does when people walk up steps, naturally walking faster. She continued up the steps not looking around her at all, just focused on what was ahead of her. She continued up the steps until she reached the third floor and exited on the floor. There were several cubicles and a conference room on the far side, the shades were drawn so no one on the floor could look into the meeting, that was her destination and she continued on to it.

People moved past her uneventfully and she opened the door to the conference room and walk inside. The men inside looked at her as she entered silently, she gave a brief smile and sat down on a chair that sat away from the table. She crossed her legs and went into her briefcase and pulled out a pad and pen and began to write down what the man was saying. For a moment they seemed to question her presence but, after a moment they continued on as if she wasn't there. The head man at the table talk about something or another that she wasn't interested in, she wrote down on the pad steadily, making sure pause a few seconds after he paused to make it look as if she was writing down his words.

On the pad she wrote down: 'Pompous asshole' fifteen times and continued on with other negative words about the man as he spoke, he looked at her and smiled, whiles looking at her body and going on to his conversation. She felt ill at the look he gave her, on the pad she wrote: 'be extra rough' and underlined it several times. None of the men knew what she was writing but, assumed it was related to the topic at hand, they also didn't notice that she had pulled something else out of the suitcase and placed it under her chair and was slowly pushing her suitcase under the table with her foot. When she had gotten it safely under the table she crossed her leg the other way and continued with her notes.

Nina Williams, was possibly the world's greatest assassin. Her father was a master of the profession and worked for the highest payer during the whole of the cold war. Her mother had died years before and he took Nina with him and she coincidentally learned the tools of the trade as she traveled with him and her sister. However her father right before the end of the Cold War her father was killed by some strange circumstances that to this day she wasn't able to fully explain. She missed her father dearly and the hate for the men who killed him helped her to do her job so efficiently.

After a minute or two a couple of the men around the table started to tug on their collars in an attempt to loosen their ties. Nina took noticed and gave it a few more seconds before leaning over and picking the object under her chair and putting it on. The men didn't notice and a few moments later a thin layer of smoke started to lift from under the table.

The head man who had admired Nina noticed and started to look around, instinctively he turned to face Nina and was stunned to see her sitting there in the fashion except now she was wearing a gas mask.

Nina waited for the man's mind to put the pieces together and blinked twice as he stared at her. Finally in a delayed act of desperation he tried to jump out of his seat and flee but, she was expecting this. Cool headed, she stood up and grabbed him by the arm and twisted around his back so that he had no choice but, to comply to her will. Roughly she began to push him out of the conference room as more smoke filled it. Some of the men had already passed out, and some were feverishly running to the door and spilling out.

Nina followed suit and forced the man out of the door, on the other side a crowd of panicked people had stymied themselves unable to get past each other. So to encourage them to move she took the gun hidden under her blouse and pointed to the ceiling and shot twice. With that everyone on the floor began to run or duck for cover spilling out of Nina and her hostages way. She pushed the man (whose name was David) strongly in the direction of the staircase, the pressure she applied to his wrist echoed all the way up to his arm and even to his back, he had never experienced a twist like this before.

With a flick of her wrist Nina took the mask off her face and threw it to the ground, David fell to his knees briefly and she pulled him up with more force than she had to causing him to scream in pain.

Violently she kicked the door to the staircase open and pushed her hostage through it and followed. Her face remained calm, though chaos had broken out, she had done this too many times in too many different ways, this wasn't any different. As she turned the corner to go down the next flight of steps she saw two armed guards come through the second floor entrance and start towards her. Quickly she threw David forward and down the steps, his body rolling like a wheel, bumpily down them and into the two guards, momentarily pinning them between the wall. That moment was all she needed, she aimed briefly and took two shots both landing squarely in the guards' chest. They slumped immediately and Nina grabbed David again (this time with a different but, equally painful grip) and pulled him to his feet.

"Get up," She growled at the man when he stalled.

"Please don't!" he cried out to her but, she twisted him to her face and put the gun to his head.

"Don't test me," she grumbled darkly, so much so that David wasn't sure of what he was more afraid of: the gun or her anger. "Move!" She pushed him and he continued to the steps but, when he did she heard the first floor door open and more guards spill into the stairway.

"This way!" she demanded; she pulled him to the second floor door and pushed him through. More people in the way so she shot into the air again causing them to, again, spill to either side and out of her way. She smiled her mind a bit, it was somewhat of a sinister version of Moses parting the Red Sea. She continued on and turned left but, in the near distance she could see more guards coming her way, same as the other side. They refrained from firing in order to not hit anyone innocent and Nina pushed her victim into a different conference room. With one shot she shattered a large window on the far wall and pushed David forward and tossed him out.

Before she could throw herself out she heard the guards rushing into the room, she spun around on her heel and pulled another gun from under her blouse with her free hand and held it steady in front of her. Nothing happened, she didn't fire and they didn't fire, instead they watched each other weary of what the other would do.

"Put the guns down" one of the guards demanded; Nina sneered at him. Did he think this minor misstep was going to be a term of surrender? She looked around slowly remaining calm and eventually noticed the fire extinguisher at the front of the room by the door. She smiled openly which made all the guards become more tense in their stances. She imagined that they were counting to ten in their heads, that's what they were taught to do, to count to ten if there was an armed person doing nothing in front of them, or wait until they showed signs of firing. So at this rate they were around seven, So Nina counted down from five.

Five.

She glanced her eye out the window to see that David had landed squarely on a car (as she intended) but, recovered too quickly and was already getting up.

Four

There were too many men in the room, which was good to her, because no matter how she shot she was going to hit one of them.

Three

The one on the end was fidgety she surmised, he was young and scared. Perfect.

Two

The leader held his gun all wrong, he would miss her even if he were standing closer. The kick back would throw off his entire aim. Novice, she scoffed silently.

One

Bang!

She fired one shot, perfectly the sound of the blast scared the young guard and he shot too, startling the man next to him. The fire extinguisher was hit and flew off the wall and into one of the guards. He fell to the ground from the impact and his gun went off hitting another one of the guards in the back.

All of this happened within a matter of seconds and Nina shot two more times hitting two men and threw herself out the window in free-fall. She fell for seconds and curved her body for the crash into the car. She landed in the same dent that David had and rolled off of it and began to run in the direction of the parking lot that David had without any doubt gone into.

Nina ran at top speed and went into the darkened parking lot but, to her surprise a car careened towards her and she was forced to throw her body out of the way. Nina cursed, how the hell had he gotten into a car for so quickly? As the car raced away from her, she threw one gun to the ground in an attempt to aim better with the other and shot at the car.

She managed to hit the back window shield but, he still sped off. She took a breath and calmed down for a moment. It wasn't over, he thought it was over but, it wasn't even close. She had anticipated this, so she walked in the direction the car had went to get to the edge of the second floor platform. When she was close guards were coming into the parking lot, she shot in their general direction uncaring if she hit anyone and then tossed herself over the ledge.

On street level she made a quick left into an alley and came out the other side. She looked left, she looked right and there it was. She ran to the car and opened the passenger side door.

"Make a right at the corner" She demanded; the other man in the car nodded and slammed the car forward.

"What happened?" He demanded to know, Nina pulled her hair out of a pony tail and sighed.

"He got into a car and sped off" she tersely answered, the other man (whose name was Victor) spun the car right and sped down the street.

"How are we going to get him now?" He asked; Nina opened the glove compartment and pulled out a new gun, cocked it and rolled down her window.

"The fun way." she said.

Their car was on the track of catching David's car which pulled into traffic almost immediately. On a cell phone in his car David frantically called 911 and gave the description of Nina and what had happened.

"No I don't know who she is!" He yelled at the operator; she asked another question he couldn't have possibly known. "No, I don't know, she probably a lunatic I need-" He didn't even here the gunshot over his own screaming but, when his passenger side side-view mirror exploded into pieces he yelled and dropped the phone on the floor. "Oh Jesus!" he screamed in panic, in the rear view mirror he could see a car quickly approaching and sticking out of the passenger side window was a flock of golden blonde hair.

In desperation he recklessly tossed his car left and headed off some incoming traffic, narrowly avoiding an accident, afterwards he crazily reached the for the ground feeling for the phone without looking away from the road. Eventually he had to look down and saw the phone, he snatched it up and put the mouth piece to his mouth but, ignored the ear piece.

"She's in a car behind me shooting at me!" He yelled at the top of his lungs. "She's in a…" he looked in the rear view mirror and aw the car still in pursuit. "Black Toyota!" He went on. "We're going down Waverly and First, I'm turning onto Pogge now!" Another shot rang out and he jumped. He turned down a side street with less traffic and was able to weave through the other cars with some ease but, the car behind him did the same.

Nina shot twice again and returned fully into the car. Calmly she reached into the glove compartment and picked out another clip, unloaded the gun and reloaded it. She looked at her companion drive the car.

"You're going to need to get me closer than this." She demanded; he revved the car forward in compliance and she returned to shooting out the window.

Victor Morel was someone she had hooked up with by accident on a previous hit. She didn't have the time to deal with him and figured he might come in handy one day and today was that day. She didn't particularly like him, he panicked easily where she was normally calm but, he was an ok driver. He cursed a mile a minute at the chase.

"What are you doing don't we need him alive?" He screamed at Nina; she ignored him and emptied another clip before coming back into the car.

"He's worth enough dead." She said as he reloaded a final time. As she poked herself out the window something pulled right next to her and grabbed her arm. To her genuine surprise a cop car had came right up to their car and the driver was holding her arm preventing her from shooting.

'How brazen" she thought, it made her mad; with expertise she flipped her hand in a way the cop didn't expect and she was grabbing his wrist, she twisted in a way that made him scream at full capacity and she felt the bone twisting to break. Before she could snap the man's wrist the cop car slammed into hers causing her to fall back into her car and release his arm. Victor and Nina simultaneously used the same curse. The cop driver pulled out his gun and pointed into their window but, Nina thought quickly and tossed her door open, knocking his shot away. For a moment they had a break, she looked at Victor and said.

"Don't let them shoot out the tires." With that she turned her body to look in the back seat. There wasn't one, in anticipation of something like this they had taken out the backseat of the car and replaced it with various ammunitions. Nina sifted through the guns and ammos as the car bounced up and down looking for one in particular.

In his car David sighed in relief as he saw the cops pull along side of his assailants car, maybe they would forget about him and this nightmare would be over. He made a turn to try and get away from the chaos but, to his dismay all the cars made the turn with him. He spat a string of profanities, he had no clue why this person was killing him, all he wanted to do was get away. He saw two more police cruisers ahead of him and felt his heart calm slightly, in the rear view mirror he saw another cop car trying to pin his attacks car between the two. He smiled, slightly.

"Nina!" Victor yelled over the sound of the revving engines, wind and sirens. Finally she reemerged and in hand had a SPAS shotgun, She calmly pumped it once with her left hand and pointed it out her window made a slight aim and pulled the trigger. The explosion even surprised her somewhat and the blast pushed her back so she bumped into Victor. The cop car stalled for a moment and the driver went limp before the cop car fell behind them.

"Watch out" she calmly stated to Victor as she put the gun between him and the wheel and took another shot, hitting the passenger of the other cop car. The car did the same as the first and they were free of the pinning. Nina pumped the gun one more time just in case and squinted out the window shield.

"We need to get closer." She simply stated.

"I didn't know we were going to be blowing away cops!" Victor shouted, Nina sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Do you want to surrender?" she sarcastically asked; she could see David's car up ahead.

"There's two more cruisers with it" Victor relayed; Nina grunted and went back to the backseat looking for a new gun.

David looked in the rear view mirror and did a double take. "What happened to the other two cop cars?" he thought to himself. Directly behind him two cop cars escorted him forward but, with that other behind him he didn't feel safe. What the hell was going on?

Nina ran her right hand through her hair and came up with a UMP.45, she sighed and aimed the gun from behind the window shield, she couldn't see a thing, and their car was inching closer.

She went back out through the window and pulled the trigger. The little gun sprayed a fury of bullets but, none of them hit their mark, she frowned looking up from the sight.

"Closer" she demanded and Victor silently complied, she pointed the gun and shot again, she hit the cop car and it swerved a bit but, didn't falter too much. Ahead of the other cars Nina could see an intersection, she quietly thought to herself, this could be a problem, she pulled herself back into the car.

"What's wrong?" Victor asked; Nina calmly spoke.

"Their coming to an intersection," Nina explained. "They're not going to slow down; they're going to try to speed through."

"And?"

"And one of us might not make it through; we'll have to stop him before he makes it out of the other side of the intersection" Nina explained; Victor looked confused.

"Ok what are we going to do?" Victor asked; Nina sucked her teeth slowly; she went back out the window and aimed. She shot but, this time let a stream of bullets hail out. This time she hit her mark and the police car on the right of the car began to flail around and eventually it hit David's car and caused that car to swerve as well as the other police car. Nina quickly was back in the car and said:

"We need to get him before he gets out of the intersection" more to herself than victor, she went to the back seat and sifted through the guns again.

"He's straightening up, he's going to get in there." Victor warned; Nina heard this and knew it was going to be a close one, she sifted through the weapons looking for one specific gun. More hurriedly she went though the guns until she found it and pulled it up carefully and away from Victor's head.

"You're going to have to steady the car." Nina said as she pulled the Intervention M-200 into the front seat. She moved out side of the car so that she was somewhat resting on the back of the seat and the door, she pulled the gun's sight to her eye. In it she could see David much more clearly, she aimed trying to get the crosshairs to meet at the back of his head but, the car jumped and she lost it. Frustrated she pulled herself back into the car and leaned her shoulder out the window and rested the gun between the side view mirror and the rest of the car.

At that point the other car pulled into the intersection and the cars coming the opposite way began to get in her way, she cursed loudly just as the her car came into the intersection. she went back with her shoulders out the window. She had to make this shot, she kept the gun steady and watched for the cross-hairs to meet at David, she was getting close. Just another centimeter or two and…

Bang!

The car careened to the right as it was hit from the left and behind. Nina lost her balance, Victor slammed the wheel in the opposite direction to curb the lost of direction. He looked to his right and Nina was gone, the passenger door was flung open and he couldn't see her. He cursed.

"Nina!" He called and he leaned over to see her seat better and to his surprise she was still in the car inches from street her legs gripping the seat keeping her from falling out, she still held the sniper rifle in her hand. "Jesus!" he screamed and helped pull her up, she didn't bother to close the door she put the sniper in the gap of the window and aimed.

She could see David's head bobbing up and down from his driving, traffic was staling up ahead, this was her last chance, she took a deep breath to keep her body from moving any extra. The cross-hairs came together, on the rear view mirror, down to the shift, slowly it crept up, wavering from side to side a little, she held her breath, her mind went blank, the crosshair moved up and up, the car jerked and then in an instant of error the crosshairs went right at David's head and in reflex she pulled the trigger.

The explosion of the gun firing scared Victor and he cursed again and he twisted the car away another. Nina almost fell out of the car but stayed in control, David's car was still moving forward, she looked into the sight again and she happily saw a small splatter of read on his window shield and his head lazily bobbing in the commotion.

"I got him" she announced; just as his car ran into the wall of a building. She flipped her hair and Victor let out a sigh.

"That was a one in a million shot" he commented; she leaned back to the back seat and picked a handgun out and put the sniper away.

"Thanks," She said looking in her side-view mirror. They had exited the intersection and no cars were coming up on them. "By the way" she started, Victor turned to see what she was going to say but, she fired the bullet into his head before he even knew what was coming. In a fluid manner she tossed herself out the car and rolled before coming to a stop. Within seconds she stood up and brushed herself off. Victors car hit a fire hydrant, and the horn bleated steadily. She looked around, everyone was focused on the commotion in the intersection. She walked off.

Mission accomplished.

_The Present_

"Quite impressive," Herenger muttered. "You are the best"

Nina crossed her legs, uninterested in his flattery.

"Look, I didn't come here to hear how good I am," She started. "You sought me out." She reminded. Herenger nodded.

"Indeed," he said. "The truth is I want to hire you for a big job." Herenger admitted.

"All I need is a price and the name of the mark." Nina coldly responded.

"Two million dollars, with the chance for a million more," Herenger spoke. "And Heihachi Mishima." he concluded; at that Nina looked up and smirked.

"That's going to require a little more work, he's not someone I can just walk up on" She admitted. Herenger shook his head.

"Actually it may be easier than you think," Herenger began. "You see Heihachi is sponsoring a fighting tournament, if you enter and win it should be easy." Herenger explained. Nina thought.

"That easy huh?" she asked.

"That easy," He could see she was wary. "trust me." It was that that broke her wariness until a full distrust.

"Trust you?" She asked. "You bring me here using this bogus alias 'Daniel Herenger' and you think I'm going to trust you?" She asked.

"You don't believe I'm Daniel Herenger?" He asked.

"I believe you as much as I believe I'm the queen of England" she sneered, he laughed.

"Well you have to understand that protecting myself it-"

"Save it, I'll enter this tournament," Nina snapped. "Just have that three million ready."


	24. Kunimitsu

**Kunimitsu**

Above them in a tree, a bird called in a sing song fashioned and then flew off to a different branch. From where they stood they couldn't see the sky, the canopy of the forest blocked out the blue, with puffy blotches of white for its scattered flurry of greens and browns. Occasionally a blue, red or black bird would dart across and streak the color momentarily before settling down in peace.

Walking on the dirt and sparse moments of grass Kunimitsu watched the young boy as he in turn, watched for rabbits. Slightly ahead of them was Yoshimitsu, he walked briskly but, silently through the forest keeping a look out for bigger animals and making sure they didn't walk outside the boundaries of the boy's testing ground.

It was common for two Manji to take a younger one out to teach him how to hunt or be stealthy or at the very least to have fun. What wasn't common was for the leader of the Manji clan and his second in command to be the two people to escort the young Manji. Everyone raised someone else's offspring in the clan, they were one community bonded by the fact that they were hidden and needed to rely on each other to survive, not that any parent would protest to Yoshimitsu and Kunimitsu taking their child but, that was how the Manji clan generally worked.

It also helped that Yoshimitsu was still in many ways, a kid at heart. He enjoyed the same things the young kids and teenagers did in the clan, in fact once a month he took the young kids and teenagers, to the city and to an arcade to enjoy themselves and from what Kunimitsu had seen , he was the biggest kid of them all.

He played every game, twice and was always excited to do so. The boys loved him they would play with him and always beat him. He would act surprised but, the truth was he always let them win. The arcade owners were fond of Yoshimitsu too, in fact they let the kids and him play free every month. The Manji leader had done more than many favors for them and whenever the Clan pulled a big haul of cash a portion went to the workers at the arcade for maintenance or whatever they needed.

Kunimitsu remember when they were separated from Tetsujin and the city, when the Manji Clan was _really_ secluded and how that all changed all thanks to their current leader who fearlessly issued the most changes to the Manji Clan at once in the history of the Clan. There was no one like him and she doubted there would ever be one again.

After the event in Hiroshima, the death of the previous Yoshimitsu, her outing and him being offered the position of Yoshimitsu (and turning it down) She was expelled from the Manji fighting force and watched carefully so that she didn't sneak back in. Her grandfather assumed the role of Yoshimitsu to much fanfare, he was a good leader and she respected him, it also was something prideful about being directly related to a Yoshimitsu. After turning down the chance to be Yoshimitsu, she observed her friend slowly become more and more of a leader in the party. The first thing that he did that surprised her was start wearing the fox mask that they took from her. He wore it everyday all day, in an act of solidarity against her being kicked from the fighting party, in fact this was something he hadn't given up, to this day he wore many different mask around, in fact it had been several years since anyone had last seen his actual face. As sport she did the same. The Yoshimitsu also appointed him leader of the Manji fighting party and he humbly accepted the role, he carried out missions successfully but, never let anyone forget that she was black-listed (in his opinion) unjustly for no reason.

He gained much respect and people followed him like a leader but, he never accepted the actual responsibility. He took much time to himself in the forest without becoming something of a hermit, he also began going into the next town and making a habit of bringing the people food, money and clothes if they needed it. The Manji did this occasionally but, in secret mostly, he made frequent, announced visit to the town with items and at first the people were wary of him but, eventually they grew to like him and welcome him.

Everything ran smoothly for a year and a half so it was surprising when her grandfather decided to step down as Yoshimitsu. He argued he was too old and that the role of the Yoshimitsu was not only to advise and give wisdom but, to fight and be active as well. Two things his age forbade him to do. Under Manji rules if a Yoshimitsu steps down the elder council takes the testimony of a Yoshimitsu and his Kunimitsu and vote on a successor, this entire process could take a great deal of time considering there were a lot of strong young men in the clan. This particular time took a week to decide and on night of the last day of the week the elder council called a meeting.

Meetings were always a big deal and a majority of the Clan always showed, this night many women came (they were not required to come to _any_ meeting like the men, but also not barred from any) for the assigning of a new Yoshimitsu was too big of an even to not see with one's own eyes. The elder council sat in their crafted wooden chairs upon a stage to either side of the Yoshimitsu and Kunimitsu who traditionally stood in the middle.

Large torches, that stood nearly seven feet were lit in five places on the stages (others adorned the outline of the crowd so they could see as well) and everyone on stage was dressed in ceremonial robes. A middle aged walked to the middle of the stage, bowed at the council and the Manji leader and stood in front of the crowd.

"Hail" He said to the crowd loudly and bowing to them

"Hail" the entire collective of the Manji clan responded back in unison, the speaker somewhat smirked at that.

"We are gathered here on this night to witness the turning of the moon." He spoke, the term representing the election of a new Yoshimitsu. "We have seen season go by under our current wise leader and we wish to pay him most respects on this night." The crowd repeated 'Hail' again.

In the crowd she tried to look incognito. Tonight wasn't so much of a joys night for her, when the new leader was elected her grandfather would be sacrificed and immolated. Naturally she had a great of anxiety about this and watched the ceremonies with a growing sense of dread.

The speaker spoke words of the current Yoshimitsu, detailing his life and his achievements, they mentioned his children and his children's children and she sunk into the crowd at the mention of her name. The audience 'ohhed' and 'ahhed' at the details and she couldn't help but, smiling at some of the fond memories of him.

When he was done the real ceremony began, workers came out from every side and passed everyone drinks so they could toast, in acceptance, of the Yoshimitsu stepping down. This process took quite some time and so the speaker said some traditional Buddhist prayers throughout, he spoke slowly and most of the audience chanted along with him.

She said them too, although she mumbled them more than the people around her. When the worker came to her to pass her the ceremonial drink she looked down and avoided his eyes and took the drink. On stage she saw her grandfather whisper something to the elder council member. He looked calm and unworried even though his life was coming to an end, he was always calm that way in the face of danger or adversity. In fact she had learned most of her mannerisms from him and fought like he did in battle.

When the last of the drinks were passed out, the workers went back to their corners and lit torches, representing they had finished. The speaker smiled and finished the last chant and too a deep breath.

"And now we will hear the nominations from the Yoshimitsu and elder council." The speaker bowed and walked, backwards to his left and the Yoshimitsu, Kunimitsu and eldest member of the council walked forward and addressed the audience.

"Hail" The elder council member spoke.

"Hail" they again answered in unison.

"It is all too rare that we are able to choose our next leader and tonight we should take the time to appreciate how fortunate this ceremony truly is." He began. "Too often our leader is taken from us in battle but our virtuosity is rewarded this night, as we have chosen the perfect successor." She looked around, everyone was attentive, there were never any hints as to who was chosen.

She guessed Feng would be chosen, he was strong, smart, loyal and extremely virtuous. A powerful young man with a sharp mind that could command troops into battle with the slightest ease and win success with the same effort, and if not him someone else. There were many able bodied and minded young men who trained with the hopes to serve the clan but, not corrupted into thinking becoming the leader was a competition.

Her grandfather moved forward and her thoughts stopped quickly as to pay attention.

"Our choice is one I am proud to have made," he spoke slowly, not of some weakness but, so that everyone understood the weight of his words. "Our clan has always sought out leaders who could lead for many years with strength unmatched by rivals but, also a heart that would be compassionate enough to forgive every transgressor against us." He smiled. "My parting with the blade is one I welcome, as I realize that I am no longer able to serve my people best, it is through the knowledge of fighting with it that I have learned that letting go can be just as a powerful blow to our enemies as a mighty swing. And passing it to my successor will be one of the greatest moments of my life." He looked around the sea of faces and for a moment he stopped, looking right at her. She felt flush with embarrassment but, dared not to look away. He smiled and continued to look at all the others. "He yields a mind that cannot be beaten, an ethic that cannot be broken and a strength that cannot be absolved. We have all watched him for years in amazement wondering how one young man could become so experienced. How one boy could hold so much wisdom in his mind and not have lived the years of many? Among conferencing the elder council, my Kunimitsu and myself were _convinced_ he was sent to us by the sword to reign over our people with a justice and severe case of compassion." He smiled again brightly, the tension in the air was stifling, everyone knew the next words would introduce the successor, and for some reason she held her breath.

"Come to us now and take your place among leaders." He gestured to the left of the stage, there was a moment of nothing, no movement no sound. Everyone watched the left stage silently breathlessly awaiting for the soon-to-be new leader to walk out.

And then he did and the breath she was holding was forced out as if she had been punched in the gut. When the curtain swayed away, he walked briskly without looking at the crowd to the center stage. Everyone on the stage smiled, everyone in the audience stood,, almost lifeless in surprise, awe and admiration.

"I humbly accept the role of Yoshimitsu." He said at the center stage and the crowd erupted in a chant: "Yoshimitsu! Yoshimitsu!". There was an extra sense of apprehension in the chants, She didn't chant instead she thought quickly. She knew history but, she couldn't recall anyone asked to be Yoshimitsu twice. The few who had declined had never been asked again but, here he was now. Asked once and denied and asked again and accepting. She felt her cheek warm, a sense of pride filled her body. That was her best friend, and no one in the world deserved it more.

"Hail!" The speaker shouted, holding up his drink.

"Hail!" the entire crowd, including her, chanted and holding their drinks up. And in one fluid motion every Manji gulped it down.

"The Ceremony shall continue with the passing of the sword." The speaker said; she felt her heart drop again. She knew the procedure was to pass the sword to the new leader and then he would take it, stab the former leader slowly and mercifully and he would die quietly and be immolated later. She did not want her grandfather to die.

The Yoshimitsu and the young man stood face to face (the young man wore a mask but, this one revealed most of his face) and both smiled at one another. The older man took the sword with the sheath from his beltline and held it in front of him.

"With this sword I do grant thee the role as Leader of our faithful clan." He smiled and kneeled on both knees, bowed his head and held the sword up. Everyone took a deep breath, for once the sword passed hands the young man, her best friend would be the leader of the Manji clan.

The young man looked down at the sheath sword and smiled to himself. There was a solemn happiness within him. Once he took the sword there wouldn't be a chance to turn back. So slowly he put his hands down and lifted the sword from the older man's hands.

The crowd screamed in such excitement that the very air trembled and threw their wooden cups into the air or at the stage. The elder council laughed happily and clasped their hands together in a way that only older people do.

It was done, Yoshimitsu stood before them.

He unsheathed the sword and nodded at the crowd, they calmed for now was the sacrifice. She looked away for a moment but, decided to watch. For a Manji there was no greater honor than to die by the Yoshimitsu Blade.

He took the blade and held it to the older man's chest, point right above his heart.

"With my first act as leader I shall," he repeated the ceremonial words of sacrifice. "spare the life of this former leader." He concluded and his arm fell lazily to his side before sheathing the blade.

The crowd all gasped in total shock, this had _never_ happened before. To sacrifice the former leader was more than a tradition, it was a law. A precautious to prevent corruption, for all who held the sword were cursed. All the greed, hate and anger in the men who fell to the sword was held inside and the welder took it. When separated from the sword the former Yoshimitsu's would succumb to the residual evil still left within them from the sword.

The older man looked up and looked around unsure of what to do, the elder council sat forward just as unsure. Finally the older man stood to his feet.

"But you must," He declared. "It is law." In the crowd she watched unsure of her feelings. Her grandfather wouldn't die but, this was blasphemy. Yoshimitsu smiled kindly.

"A law that shan't be upheld this time." He responded.

"But a sacrifice is required for the Yoshimitsu, to gain the trust of the sword." The eldest council member spoke.

"Haven't I already done so?" They were speaking loud enough for the crowd to hear. The crowd stood in an awe silence, Yoshimitsu turned to them. "I have already slain one of my masters, I should not be subjected to do it twice." He explained.

Of course he was referencing the event in Hiroshima, the elder council members muttered to themselves. She went over the law in her mind quickly. It was decreed that the incoming Yoshimitsu must sacrifice a former one, it wasn't clear if it meant the immediate one preceding him. The sword would have rejected him and refuse to kill the other Yoshimitsu if it didn't trust this Yoshimitsu.

The older man put his hands on his hips and gave Yoshimitsu and wry smile.

"This is unprecedented." he said to Yoshimitsu, the leader smiled and nodded.

"As is the result." He tersely stated, the elder council moved forward and grabbed Yoshimitsu on the shoulder and squeezed.

"The move is valid," the elder council member spoke. the crowd gasped again in delight. "You have already fulfilled that duty." He smiled and Yoshimitsu bowed in respect.

"Well," the speaker started. "This is a night of amazing results. We shall hear the Yoshimitsu's choice for Battalion leader and the new Kunimitsu." Yoshimitsu nodded and addressed the crowd.

"I have had the pleasure to fight beside fighters of the utmost experience and skill. And for them to be my brethren is a contentment unlike any other. So I have had a difficult time deciding who I shall take on as my battalion leaders." Yoshimitsu spoke, everyone listened in silence.

"And I have made an unyielding and unwavering decision, for leader of the battalion I have chosen," He paused and smiled. "Feng"

The choice wasn't much of a surprise and the men around Feng, who was up front, smacked him on the back and chest lovingly. The man walked to the stairs and came on to the stage. Yoshimitsu laughed openly and hugged the man, before Feng knelt to one knee and was sworn in with two brief touches with the blade. Feng stood, nervous and unsure of his new position but, confident in his leader. Yoshimitsu nodded at him and smiled.

"My choice for Kunimitsu wasn't as challenging," he admitted. "There was only one person I could think of that could take my place in this role should something happen to me. Someone who I consider to be the perfect representation of a Manji," He paused and looked around, at the audience, at the council members. "Someone who, if I were in battle with, I would trust with my very life, readily." He paused and took a deep breath. "And I have chosen Claire."

The name didn't connect immediately, she heard it but, she didn't recognize it as her name. She felt her heart beat quickly and then she saw every Manji face looking at her. She looked up on the stage and Yoshimitsu was staring directly at her. He grandfather was dumbfounded behind the leader. She stood still but, knew it wasn't a smart thing. She walked slowly and came onto the stage and kept her head down. She didn't speak or meet anyone's eyes. There was no way she would be allowed to be Kunimitsu.

"Yoshimitsu!" the elder council member hissed. "This isn't possible. A woman cannot be elected into that position!" Hr reminded but, Yoshimitsu shook his head.

"I do not elect her based on the nature of her gender," he explained. "I choose her based on her merit." He concluded; The council member rubbed his face. No one could have foresaw Yoshimitsu would attempt to break two long standing laws on the same night he was granted leadership.

"Yet still," the older man spoke. "She is forbidden." Yoshimitsu turned to the crowd and sighed.

"The true nature of this debate, when a Yoshimitsu and council disagree," He explained. "Is to be voted on by the majority of the Manji Clan," he looked around the audience. "Would you venture to say that the majority of the clan is here tonight?" He asked the elder councilmember.

"Yes, I would" He spoke softly sensing Yoshimitsu plot.

"Well then," Yoshimitsu said happily. "Let the voting commence," he turned to the audience and sat down at the edge of the stage. "Now, most of you know Claire and know of her sneaking into and then being banned from the battalion." He reminded. "And you know that here in the village she trains more hours a day than any other man, as well as she is the _only _ undefeated fighter in the sparring tournaments," He turned to Feng. "And wouldn't you say, from someone who has battle against her skill first hand that she's extremely gifted and possibly the best fighter in the village, only to be a possible second to yourself." Feng being caught off guard swallowed hard and thought.

"Second to myself?" He asked, looking at her, as she kept her eyes to the ground. "In no way is she second, she is superior. I haven't yet beaten her in battle." he admitted; looking the elder council with eyes that begged for forgiveness.

"And have any of you men been able to best her?" Yoshimitsu asked the audience, there was a murmur and the shaking of heads. "And have any of you women seen her do a good job in cooking or some other household work?" At this most chuckled. "So who better to fight by my side?" He asked. "The shall be broken, else wise I will reject this sword and banish myself from the clan."

With this everyone gasped; rejection of the sword was the highest crime of the Manji clan. The council moved uncomfortably.

"Your turn" Yoshimitsu said to the council member. The older man looked sick, Yoshimitsu knew there was no way to follow that up, he looked at the ground.

"Is it not our place to trust our leader?" He asked resigned to the crowd, they all cheered in agreement. "And will you have it that he able to do these things this night?" They positively answered. "Then what am I to say? I'd be a tyrant to look passed the wishes of our leader and our people," he turned to her. "You are the new Kunimitsu."

The crowd erupted in a cheer so loud that the moon seemed to quiver. Yoshimitsu stood and smiled before running off the stage to the left, he came back with something his hand. He handed it to her and smiled.

She looked at him in the eyes for the first time that night and there was a warm look, one of trust, confidence and happiness. She returned it back, she would never be able to thank him enough, she looked down to see what was in his hand. She smiled at the sight and took into hers and with a quick movement put it on and stood proudly.

The three of them stood there, Feng smiling with his pony tail, Yoshimitsu in his mask and holding the sword

And Kunimitsu in her Fox Mask.

Back in the present the body stalking a rabbit they didn't notice, he was doing a good job and Yoshimitsu sat in a tree watching from above. It was then that she smelled it, the rabbit did too and ran away. In the Tree Yoshimitsu darted away, the boy hadn't noticed but, Kunimitsu moved to the boy and took his shoulder.

"It's alright, next time." she reassured him as he looked ready to cry; he looked into the bush and saw another and went to stalk it.

Kunimitsu looked up but, saw no signs of Yoshimitsu, she had a feeling in her gut but, ignored it.

The boy quietly crept behind the rabbit and followed it slowly. In the wood he couldn't see much else except the flurry of movements. He stopped moving as the rabbit turned around and then fled away seeing him. He frowned and turned in defeat but, standing in front of him was a gruff man with scars about his face.

The look of the man was enough to scare the boy and he took a step back. The man smiled with crooked and missing teeth and pulled a curved blade from a sheath. He cocked his head to the side and started walking to the boy. The boy walked backwards but, tripped on a fallen tree and the man picked him up by the collar and held the knife close to the boy. His breath was rancid and he looked the boy in the eyes with mischief.

"You know how this feels?" He said gesturing to his knife, he spoke in a broken dialect. He knife up, and prepared to stab.

"Do you?" A voice asked behind the man and he suddenly felt a sharp pain in the left side of his body, he went to scream but a hand covered his mouth and another sharp pain in his neck and then he saw nothing before he hit the ground.

Kunimitsu stood there and quickly grabbed the by his arm and lead him away from the dead body. She smelled the fire, it must have been coming from Tetsujin, she lead the boy but, then stopped when she realized there was a group of men ahead of them.

They held guns and came closer. Normally this wouldn't be a problem for her but, she had to keep her eye on the boy.

"Well, well, well," one of the men said. "If it isn't a wandering passerby." He spoke maliciously and held the gun up. "Oh and a woman, couldn't tell under the mask, I wonder what else is under there." He took the gun and moved the mask slowly; at that moment she felt a cool wind pass by her. She smiled.

"Stupid man," Kunimitsu said playfully. "You've already lost."

With a quick flash the sword slashed through the man and he fell to the ground writhing; Yoshimitsu appeared and the three other men were down before they could even see the Manji leader coming.

"Took you long enough." Kunimitsu remarked; the Manji leader turned to her.

"I was forced to go on ahead," he admitted. "Tetsujin is in flames, treacherous raiders have besieged it." He explained; Kunimitsu nodded.

"How many?" She asked.

"I tallied twenty-four." He explained

"Nothing we can't deal with." Yoshimitsu went to the boy and looked him in the eye.

"Do you know the way back to the village?" He asked the boy; the boy nodded. "Good, go back and tell Feng to bring the first to Tetsujin, now go!" The boy ran off and Yoshimitsu stretched.

"Feng?" Kunimitsu asked. "Afraid you can't handle it?" she taunted.

"Not quite," Yoshimitsu denied. "Feng deserves to have some fun too."


	25. Yoshimitsu

**Yoshimitsu**

In a blur, even to himself, the blade struck the rest of the men and they fall to the ground like a house of cards whose base had been snatched from under it. He took a moment to watch the men fall and frowned at their weaponry.

"Took you long enough." Kunimitsu remarked; Yoshimitsu turned to her. She was standing in front of the young man and he looked up at the Manji leader from behind her leg.

"I was forced to go on ahead, " He admitted. "Tetsujin is in flames, treacherous raiders have besieged it." He explained, Kunimitsu nodded in her Fox mask; he could tell she was frowning as well.

The people of Tetsujin were the Manji's closest neighbors and since Yoshimitsu had come into power as the leader he made it so that the two people were closely related in affairs. The people of Tetsujin were poor but, a good people and when the Manji received their riches they had no reason to keep it for themselves, so they would take the wealth and spread it to hungry people and bring the lot back to Tetsujin and spread it there.

"How many?" Kunimitsu asked; wiping off her knife.

"I tallied twenty-four." He explained, sheathing his sword. Kunimitsu shrugged.

"Nothing we can't deal with." she commented; he walked passed her to the boy and looked him in the eye.

"Can you uncover you way back to the village?" he asked the boy; the boy nodded. "Good, go back and tell Feng to bring the first to Tetsujin, now go!" The boy ran off and Yoshimitsu stretched.

"Feng?" Kunimitsu asked. "Afraid you can't handle it?" She taunted.

"Not quite," Yoshimitsu denied. "Feng deserves to have some fun too." He added coyly. Kunimitsu smiled and comb her ponytail with her hand.

"Well lets get on with it." She sighed; it sounded annoyed, Yoshimitsu noted this and the two ran off into the wood towards the town.

As they got closer to the village the smell of fire became almost stifling, the smoke was black and the way to the village was obscured from sight. Luckily the two knew the way into the town by memory.

At the entrance the beheld the sight of Tetsujin under siege. Several of the houses were in flames and people were running, laying and passed out in the middle of the pathway. Both Yoshimitsu and his second in command scanned the view for signs of anyone hurt but, for the most part people looked to be displaced rather than damages.

The other thing the two Manji noticed were a large group of liked dressed men, entering and exiting houses. They had known the people of Tetsujin to be poor so the chances of them being from Tetsujin were slim to none.

"I thought you said Twenty-four, Yoshimitsu?" Kunimitsu exclaimed; the Manji leader frowned and but his chin into the palm of his right hand.

"They must have sought allies in our brief absence, " He admitted with somewhat of a boyish disappointment. "How many do you count now?" He asked, Kunimitsu went silent for a moment, her mask moving steadily from left to right as she counted the men.

"Forty-seven" She eventually said; the Manji leader frowned again.

"I tracked fifty-two" he explained, she turned to him and even with the mask on he could sense she was giving him a face of disapproval.

"Meet in the middle?" She asked; He nodded.

"Fifty" He spoke, she nodded and looked away, there was silence for a moment.

"First one to twenty-six wins?" Kunimitsu asked devilishly. Yoshimitsu turned to her.

"This is not some class of contest." He spoke.

"Not yet," She said, turning her whole body to him; playfully she pushed him. "Are you too chicken?" She asked; the Manji leader grunted.

"Twenty-six?" he asked; she nodded. "Fine," he agreed and he looked her in the eye. From within the mask she could make out the faintest hint of a smile. "but don't be upset when you don't win." and with that the Manji leader vanished into thin air. Kunimitsu smiled at this, all the strange powers in the world wasn't going to make him win, she thought. She shook her head tugged on her ponytail and ran into the town.

In the town square Yoshimitsu appeared again in front of some dazed town-folk. They gasped at his sudden appearance but, rejoiced when they saw it was him.

"Oh, thank heaven" one woman spoke.

"Have you acquired any injuries?" Yoshimitsu asked; she shook her head. "Which one of these exotic settlements do you call your property?" He asked.

"That one," she pointed to one with two men going inside. "There are still raiders inside!" she shrieked.

"Wonderful" Yoshimitsu smiled and moved on.

He ran to the house right next to the woman's and climbed to the roof, nimbly he jumped from one roof to the other and inspected it for a way inside.

Inside the house several of the raiders threw things about, clothes, furniture cookware looking for valuables. Every so often they would find something of minor value and stash it into one of their large bags and move on and repeat the process in another section of the house. The man didn't look the same, somewhere brawny some were skinny, others were light complexion and others of a darker tone. This meant they were more than likely not of some clan but, some large crime gang that traveled around causing trouble, somewhat of the exact opposite of what the Manji clan were.

In the main room of the house one raider, a big, rotund man, searched the drawers of a small cupboard next to the meek, fireplace. Inside he found some valuables; an old watch, two gold pieces and an old picture. They were probably all heirlooms and he could use the last to blackmail the owner for more goods.

As he put the good into his large bag (already filled with a good amount of items) and was going to move on, he heard a strange sound come from the chimney. The sound reminded him that some people hid items in their chimney, so he went to it and looked up into it. He couldn't see anything but, the sound occurred again and now his interest was snagged. He stepped out of the cinder and reached his hand into the chimney and felt for something. Blindly he probed his hand left and right until finally he had a hold of something. He tugged on it roughly.

"How discourteous!" A muffled voice said appalled from the chimney. The raider jump back and released whatever it was he was holding and took out a large knife.

"Whose in there?" he asked, also in a broken dialect, as if he had learned the sentence as one misfired word. There was a moment of silence and he put his hand back into the chimney in an attempted to replicate the results but, as he did a voice spoke behind him.

"It is not Santa Claus" Yoshimitsu politely stated; the man spun on his heel to meet Yoshimitsu image and just as he did, the Manji leader smiled and hit him on the forehead with the hilt of his blade. Almost like a cartoon the man stood absolutely rigid for a moment and then slowly fell to the ground.

"One." Yoshimitsu counted; he inspected the man briefly for some kind of clue of identification but, found none. So for a moment he stood over the man in silence. 'What would a fallen miscreant like this say for help?' he thought to himself.

"Man down, man down!" He recited the line with an accent he had heard from a film some time ago. As he said it, he realized how ridiculous he sounded and frowned. It did achieve his goal however, all the other man rushed downstairs or came from adjacent rooms to see either; what happened or who was doing a horrible job of trying to sound like one of them

One by one they piled inside and Yoshimitsu counted them as they did. The warmth of glee filled him as he had another five people in front of him. He surmised there was no way Kunimitsu would be able to catch up to him. The man looked at Yoshimitsu curiously and when they were completely baffled by what they were looking at, they began to close in on him.

"Well then," Yoshimitsu started. "Who wants to be first?"

With a flick of her wrist, Kunimitsu chopped down a man with the palm of her hand. He fell to the ground like crumpled paper. She stalked around for more raiders to deal with and saw a handful exiting another house.

She looked up the road to see there were a couple of men loading the loot into jeeps ready to drive out of the small village. She considered going after them but, they weren't posing a threat to the villagers, so she put it into the corner of her mind for the moment. Without rushing she moved on to the raiders and as she did witnessed an exchange.

A family lay in the street in desperation and fear, a father, a mother and a young daughter. The other raiders walked right by them but, one of the stayed slightly behind and in his hand was a small butterfly brooch. At the sight of the brooch the mother stood up quickly and confronted the man.

"That was my grandmothers!" She shouted more in shock than protest and she ran up to him and attempted to take it back from him. At this the father stood but, the other raiders subdued him with the sight of their guns.

The woman slammed her fist against the man's chest without any result and repeated the action several times, whilst trying to rip the brooch from his hand with her other hand. The man laughed devilishly and watched the woman struggle in vain.

"Grandma's Brooch, eh?" The gruff man asked, he had a strange accent for that region but, he talked with a better dialect than the others. "It should sell for a pretty penny in the city." At that she tried to attack him more violently but, to no avail and when the man got tired of watching her try, he back hand slapped her.

The slap was powerful, so much so that the sound of his flesh hitting hers echoed in the air. The woman was stunned at the attack and it's power but, she didn't fall over, instead she teetered left and right the way a tree does when a lumberjack cuts through its base. This, unintended motion seemed to please the raider and he slapped her again, this time twice as hard and she hit the ground almost quickly as the hand hit her. He laughed again and the others were amused by his actions, it was then that Kunimitsu intervened.

"Hey!" She yelled at the man as he was kneeling over to taunt the woman; he continued laughing and slowly looked up. She paid extra mind to the men with guns, she came mask to face with the man. "I hate a man who hits a defenseless woman." she sneered at him; he seemed lightly amused at her bravery and theatrical look.

"Is that so?" He asked looking right into the fox mask. "Are you defenseless?" he asked; from within her mask and out of sight from the raider Kunimitsu smiled.

"Oh no," she admitted. "I've got a knife." She jerked quickly and the man's face changed from muted glee to painful shock. Kunimitsu took the knife out of his side and took the brooch from his hands. She propped him up for a moment remembering the men with the guns. She timed her action and turned quickly, tossing the body of the man in the direction of the others.

It worked, his body hit the others like a bowling ball striking pins and they all fell. She followed this up by running over to the fallen men and knocking them out on by one until all of them lay comatose on the ground. When this was over she turned to the family and saw the mother had reunited with them and were huddled watching Kunimitsu in awe. She tossed the brooch in their direction and the father caught it.

"Thank you." the father spoke, she turned her head slightly in his direction and nodded.

Yoshimitsu walked outside the house feeling collected, none of them men in the house game him any trouble at all but, on the outside he was confronted by one with a gun. He frowned at the sight of the weapon.

"Such a disgusting weapon." He said to himself. "Young man, would you be so kind as to put your weapon down and fight justly." The man raised the gun in shot in Yoshimitsu's direction, at that the Manji leader teleported a foot to his right missing the bullet. He stroked his chin in thought. "I guess not" he muttered to himself. The man shot again and without moving his body, teleported several feet to the left and forward.

The man seemed shocked at the Manji's power and shot again, Yoshimitsu continued to teleport forward, all the way to the left and then to the right and eventually he was right in front of the young man. "Wrong choice" Yoshimitsu said playfully and bumped the hilt of his blade on the boy's head knocking him out.

It was when he fell Yoshimitsu saw another man trying to escape into the forest with his goods.

"Sneaky little rabbit" Yoshimitsu whispered to himself; so he began to stalk behind the man slowly as if playing a game of hide-and-go-seek until he was right behind him. "Halt!" the Manji leader called. The man stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face him. "And what are you doing?" Yoshimitsu asked the way a father would ask a guilty child. The man didn't say anything, so Yoshimitsu quickly aimed a punch in his direction. To his surprise the man's body flew to the left and the punch missed.

"Hey!" Kunimitsu asked standing over the man's body. "This one is mine!" She exclaimed excitedly.

"Claptrap," the Manji leader cried. "I witnessed him first!" Kunimitsu shook her head.

"No you didn't!" she protested. "I was waiting for him to get closer into the forest before taking him out."

"But had you not interfered I would have vanquished him," Yoshimitsu explained. "He is my rightful seven." Kunimitsu put her hand on her hips and shook her head.

"No," she demanded. "He's _my_ eleven!" she went on.

"_Eleven_?" Yoshimitsu asked. "By what unit of measure are you counting!" he asked shocked.

"Now don't get sore because I'm doing better than you," Kunimitsu demanded.

"Fine, fine," Yoshimitsu digressed. "We shall take him both and claim half a measure." Yoshimitsu suggested; Kunimitsu thought for a moment, all the while the man laid under her foot.

"Fine," She agreed, they shook hands and the two of them delivered blows to the man and he fell into darkness,

"Really Kunimitsu?" Yoshimitsu asked. "Eleven?" She smiled in her mask and flipped her ponytail.

"Well you know," She started. "I still got it." she said quietly.

The two of them were amused by this sentiment and because they were, neither noticed the car barreling down the dirt road towards them, only a few seconds before a horrible collision did Kunimitsu see the car from thee far reaches of her eye and she darted out of the way, almost being knocked down by the force of the moving car next to her. Quickly she surmised that this was one of the cars she saw being loaded with the stolen goods.

"Yoshi!" she shouted with urgency. "They have stuff in the car." The Manji leader's head turned in the direction of the car and he frowned for a moment.

"I shall return" He sighed and darted off in the direction of the car.

His feet were moving impossibly fast, faster than any man could possibly imagine. His legs a blur against the dirt road, pounding it like two hammers strapped to the propeller of an aeroplane. His focus didn't waver any, he had to catch up the car but, it was moving too fast. Despite his unique powers he wasn't able to run down automobiles at a moments notice. For now he remained five feet behind the car and remained at a steady pace.

He could see the driver looking into the rear view mirror looking at his pursuer and trying to force the car to move faster to lose him but, the car was old and Yoshimitsu resolve hadn't abated any.

The car swerved slightly to the left in an effort to throw the Manji off but, Yoshimitsu stayed right on top of the new movement and managed to close the gap ever so slightly.

"Slow down you brute" Yoshimitsu mumbled to himself and it was then that he knew the car wasn't going to slow down before he had to. Yoshimitsu thought of something to do to get the stolen goods back and he waited until the time was just right and thrust himself forward in a leaping jump before vanishing into thin air.

In the car the man drove, sweating about his forehead and hands, so that it made holding the wheel more of an event than an afterthought. When the Manji leader suddenly appeared in his car and landed in the passengers seat, he was startled but, thought quickly. He grabbed his gun from the dashboard and turned it to the leader.

With that Yoshimitsu blocked his hands expertly blocked the man's hand and the shot was stopped but, the raider randomly moved his hand about trying to find a weakness in the Manji's form and Yoshimitsu struggled to keep blocking.

'Confounded' he thought to himself 'I only remember five of the seven forms". He watched as his hands went through form three, four and five and knew the next time the robber spun his gun around he might not be able to block it.

And he was right.

This time his hand missed the raiders gun and the barrel was pointed right at his side and he took the shot, at first he thought he had hit Yoshimitsu but, after a moment realized it was only an after image from his teleportation.

When Yoshimitsu reappeared it was outside of the car and he landed into a sprint chasing the car again.

"Ok," He said to himself. "Different plan" He ran now with extra effort and took out his blade. Within a few moments he was within reach of the back passenger side wheel and with a pointed stab he burst the wheel open. The car shook as if it were ill and then slowly began to sway left and right as if it were going to fishtail but, before it did the driver caught a hold of it. It did however; cause the car to decrease its speed and with that Yoshimitsu pulled up to the front driver's side wheel and opened it up as well.

This resulted in an almost instantaneous fishtailing, the car spinning in circles whilst going forward. This time Yoshimitsu teleported into the back seat and pulled the loot from the floor before tossing it out the rear window.

"Good fortunes!" the Manji leader called to the thief and teleported back outside, starting in a brisk sprint but slowing down and letting the car continue to careen out of control. He knelt over and sighed, panting to catch his breath before standing up right and picking the bag of stolen items off the ground. He threw them over his shoulder and walked slowly back to the village.

When he returned Feng had arrived with a few others and were tending to the injured people. In the town square the rest of the thieves were tied up together with several Manji standing over them. Feng saw him and Yoshimitsu smiled at him prior to waving at him but, Feng gave him a serious face in return.

"Stop thief!" Feng yelled and pointed in his direction, confused the leader turned his face back to look behind him but, saw no one. when he turned back Feng was only inches away from his face and swinging his staff towards the Manji leader.

As a reflex the Manji drew his sword and blocked the incoming attack, a moment of stillness passed between them.

"Alright," Feng said resignedly "It's only _this_ guy" He laughed and Yoshimitsu cracked a smile under his mask.

"Who do you all insist on treating me in such a manner?" He asked; Feng gave him a hard slap on the back his shoulder.

"Cause we like you!"

It was then that Kunimitsu came into view she walked up to them and nodded at Yoshimitsu.

"Is that all of them?" Yoshimitsu asked.

"Yes, they tried to escape but, ran into Feng in the forest." She explained; Yoshimitsu nodded.

"Good, they shall be maintained here until our next stopover into this city," He looked at the thugs. "and leave them with the police." he sneered; Feng stepped forward.

"But what about the people?" He asked; he gestured to the damaged town. "They've lost everything, it'll take years to rebuild what little they had. It'll take time and money" Feng suggested, The Manji leader pointed his finger to the sky.

"Aha!" He said as if discovering something, the two other Manji next to him looked at him confused. "I have procured a means for us to compose some money to assist the people of this town."

"And what's that?" Kunimitsu asked somewhat incredulously. With that the Manji leader reached in his pocket (an action that surprised Feng as he was unaware that Yoshimitsu even had pockets in his lavish costume) and pulled out a folded piece of paper.

"This was in one of the houses." He unfolded the paper and the two Manji came close; Kunimitsu read out loud.

"Come enter the King of Iron Fist Tournament."


	26. Marshall Law

**Marshall Law**

Today was going to be a good day, today was going to be one of those days where everything went according to plan. Soon there was going to be money flowing and all of Marshall Law's dreams would becoming into fruition. Sitting Indian style on the floor looking out the window into the street, Law watched the people walk by. It was a funny thought to think that people out there were total clueless as to what was going to happen in the next couple of months.

As soon as Law had seen the poster for the 'King of Iron Fist' Tournament he knew he had to sign up for it. He needed the money, working in a restaurant full time in San Francisco and then commuting back to Arizona. What he wanted the most was to open up his own dojo, a _real_ dojo, the place they had now was some tiny space with windows. He wanted a dojo where more than he and Paul would attend, there was the other guy and he seemed like a rich guy but, aside from the three of them no one had come into the dojo to train or spar; just to ask direction or if they thought it was the dry cleaning place it used to be.

All of that would come to an end though, when he and Paul entered and won the 'King of Iron Fist' tournament they would take the money and open a real dojo together, the rest would be split up between them.

The two of them had met three years ago; when Law had gotten out late from the restaurant he had to take the expense and stay in a hotel that night. Going back to Arizona Phoenix would only result in him not getting enough sleep and not making it back to work on time the next day.

As he walked the streets early in the morning he came up on a biker going through the streets, the man was lost and asked Law for directions.

"Hey!" the man yelled over the roar of the engine; Law barely heard him but, turned his way. The man yelled a little more but, this time Law couldn't make out a single word of what he was saying so he went closer. The man took off his helmet and revealed a pillar of blonde hair as well as a gruff half shaven face. Immediately Law became cautious of the strange man and kept his mind alert. The man on the motorcycle turned off the engine.

"Sorry about that," even his apology was gruff. "I'm looking for Mitsurugi road?" He asked; Law nodded as it was a commonly overlooked street. Law pointed down the road.

"You have to go three blocks down, then make a left at Clifton, go down two more blocks and make a right you'll be on Mitsurugi" he answered, the biker scratched his eyebrow with his pinky and nodded.

"Sounds easy enough," he said He put the helmet back on. "Thanks" he offered and revved the engine back to life and pulled off in that direction.

Law continued down the road in the same direction, taking his time in a sleepy daze he could somewhat hear the motorcycle in the near distance but, he was so tired it could have just been the sound of his own breathing.

He walked for what seemed like ten minutes but, what most likely was another four minutes, and found himself a block away from Clifton. To his surprise the biker was idle at the street and there were several men crowding around, it looked like trouble saw Law kept his distance but, watched.

As Law came up to the disagreement he could hear the aggressors taunting the biker.

"That's a real nice bike you've got there" One of the men said; his way of speaking was obnoxious, every word was drawn out, as if he was trying to make the sounds more understandable to a person hard of hearing. He touched the bike by running his finger across it, even that action was obnoxious, pseudo-sexual even and the biker, reluctantly, kicked the stand down and climbed off the bike. Calmly he put the helmet on one of the handle bars and stretched his neck.

"Look, I'm looking for Mitsurugi road," he started. "I don't have a problem with you guys and you don't want a problem with me." He warned; at this all the men, all six of them, seemed to perk up in unison. The obnoxious man laughed and a skinny alternative came up behind him and began to speak.

"What's the problem?" he asked. "We're just admiring your bike" Even he somewhat stretched out his words.

"Mitsurugi road." The biker simply restated.

"Wait, wait, wait," the obnoxious one began again. "Why don't you let us borrow this bike?" he asked; the biker sighed and shifted his weight to his left impatiently.

"Look guys," the biker started. "I'm only going to warn you one more time-" he started but, the skinny one pulled out a switchblade and came closer.

"We insist." he hissed, there was silence in the air as the knife was pointed at the biker and then:

"Ahahahahahahahahaha!" the biker laughed so loudly his voice might have carried for miles, his shoulders bounced up and down as he did so and he even hunched over to catch his breath.

'He's crazy' Law thought to himself.

"What's so funny, bud?" The obnoxious one asked; the biker let the residual laugh die out and stood straight.

"What's funny?" he asked back. "What's funny is that you think that, that little butter knife is going to scare me." his last two words were snagged in another fit of laugher, the two main men seemed offended while the other four looked around at each other confused.

"Well why don't we just see?" the long winded one spoke, the biker rubbed his face in laughter but composed himself just in time to say:

"Why not?"

The knife came dashing forward at the biker and the biker didn't seem to move until the last moment, he moved to the side and grabbed his attackers arm with one hand and slammed his other fist into the man's gut. The sheer impact of the blow startled Law even from his distance away. It was so strong that the attacker dropped the knife and was lifted off the ground several feet. When his feet touched the ground again the biker shoved his shoulder upon him and sent the attacker flying backwards.

The other man stared, slightly baffled at the display.

"Who's next?" the biker asked; at that taunt all of the men came at once to the biker and he despaired none. Within moments of throwing fist and kicks all of the men were on the ground writhing in pain and the biker seemed to not be disturbed at all. The men picked themselves off the ground and began to run off into the night, at that the biker seemed disappointed.

"That's it?" he asked aloud but, there was no answer, so he shrugged and took his helmet, put it on and got back on the bike.

In the darkness, not uncovered by the streetlight the biker could not have seen one of the men had returned with a gun but, from where Law was he could see. So quickly he ran over to warn him but, knew it would be too late, so he sprung into action.

With a sprint and a jump Law was in front of the gun, a quick hop with his knee out landed into his stomach and Law turned with his back facing the assailant and threw his fist backwards and smashed into his face and the man fell to the ground comatose.

The biker turned instinctively at the action and saw Law standing over the body and the gun lying next to the beaten man. The biker climbed back off the bike slowly and took off his helmet. and looked at the scene a little longer in silence.

"Thanks." the biker said truthfully, he nodded.

"No problem, he had a gun." Law answered; the biker scratched the back of his head.

"I see," the biker said. "Those were some pretty good moves you did there." the biker admired.

"Oh, thanks. I took martial arts as a boy" Law answered.

"Is that so?" The biker asked. "What kind?"

"Jeet Kune Do" he answered; the biker nodded understandingly.

"Very nice," the biker complimented. "I've yet to try that style."

"Which art is your main focus?" Law asked; the biker smiled and flexed a muscle in his left arm.

"Judo" the biker revealed; to Law that made sense after seeing how he fought. "I guess I owe you one." the biker said.

"No, not really." Law shrugged.

"Yes, I do." the biker said dismissively. "By the way my name is Paul." the biker explained. He put his hand out for a handshake and Law obliged.

"Law" he answered back. "Well, Marshall is my first name but, I hate it when people call me that." Law explained.

"Marshall Law," Paul repeated, despite Law's explanation of hating his first name. "Sounds like the name of a fighter" they shook hands finally, applying pressure, Law felt his hand being crushed for a moment and then it was over.

"I do a little fighting." Law explained.

"You're so skinny!" Paul exclaimed at the handshake. "Your hand fits in mine three times over. If you're going to be a fighter you'll need to beef up!" Paul explained.

"I never said I wanted to be a fighter-"Law reminded.

"Sure you do!" Paul said jovially. "With moves like that you could make good money," Law's face was skeptical. "More than you can make at the 'Lucky Dragon'" he read the name off of Law's uniform.

"I'm not that good." Law protested.

"Sure you are," Paul went on. "I'm on my way to a small tournament now. I bet if you entered you could place in the top two." Paul suggested.

"I have work tomorrow," he looked at his watch. "Actually later today!"

"Ok, I'll make you a deal." Paul started. "We enter the tournament if you win, or come into second place and I win, I will give you two thirds of the prize money." Paul suggested further.

"I don't know." Law said, suddenly a little remorseful he had gotten himself involved.

"First prize is six thousand bucks." Paul cooed; at the sum Law was quiet. He could use the money and this guy did seem like he could win, hell maybe even he could win.

"Where is this tournament?" Law asked pensively. Paul smiled widely.

"It's in Santa Modesto, today at noon." Paul explained; Law hesitated. "I'll take you there," he patted the motorcycle, Law seemed to waver some. "And back." Law couldn't help but smile at the man's determination and for some reason he felt he could trust him.

"Fine." Law sighed; Paul laughed a hearty laugh.

"Good," he boomed. "get on!" Paul put on his helmet and climbed onto the bike.

"Wait, on this?" Law asked. "But, I don't even have a helmet." Law protested.

"You only need one if you plan on falling off!" Paul answered back.

"Then why do _you_ have one?" Law asked, already getting onto the bike. Paul seemed to think for a moment and took off the helmet.

"Here" he said handing it back to Law. "And hold on."

It was hard to believe that was three years ago but, in the time since they had won a couple of tournaments together and apart. Law was in the upper tier but, Paul was undefeated and he took pride in that.

In the years Law had learned that there was no one more trust worthy than Paul. Even in times of total desperation Paul had never faltered in his loyalty to Law, the two were two peas in a pod and worked together to make a better life for each other.

The plan was the same as always. The two of them would enter the King of Iron First tournament with the intention of splitting the prize money. Between the two of them they would probably see the majority of the fighters. Hopefully the end result would have one of them in first place and the other in third, that way if the first place person lost to Heihachi Mishima, the third place could defeat the second place and fight Heihachi.

It was like getting two chances and it was more of an advantage than most of the other fighters. In the meantime from registration to the tournament Paul and Law trained everyday against as many fighters as they could find. The biggest challenge (besides fighting the legendary Heihachi Mishima) was going to be adapting to fighting against different fighting styles. The tournament was global so there were going to be styles they hadn't encountered before, so they drove around the area looking for as many martial arts dojos to spar and train with the sensei.

The result was a good one, Law felt more rounded in his fighting ability and he could tell that Paul felt the same way. The tournament was going to be a fun success in Law's opinion. They would see foreign lands and fight with other fighters, there was a lot they were going to learn and even more they were going to win. Of course the plan was to enter with their friend too, he had no interest in the money but, simply wanted to gain ownership for the Mishima Zaibatsu. In the case that he won he would give the cash prize to Paul and Law. He was a good fighter too, Law taught him directly in Jeet Kune Do.

Outside a man entered the dojo and Law got up from his Indian position to greet this man. Most of the people Law knew or had seen walking the streets before but, not this man. He had dark skin and a face that didn't seem to be able to smile if he wanted to. A seriousness that only came from being weathered away by pain and anger, his hair stood on top of his hair like a black flame and his muscles bulged from his clothes.

"Hello," Law asked coming closer and rubbing his palms against his pants. "how can I help you." He put his hand out to shake the strangers but, the man, who was Asian, did nothing to acknowledge the formality.

"I'm looking for Paul Phoenix." the man spoke, his voice was deep, almost too deep for someone of his age. His eyes scanned the dojo and Law saw the familiar look of surprise and disappointment, it wasn't much of a dojo.

"Oh Paul stepped out some time ago," Law looked at his watch. "but, he actually should be back sometime soon." Law explained. The man's eyes stopped surveying the room and looked at Law directly. The gaze sent a chill up Law's spine.

"Are you Marshall Law?" The man asked; Law felt embarrassed at the question, suddenly he didn't want to be himself.

"Yes, I am." Law answered; the man's gazed seemed to soften slightly.

"I met Paul Phoenix a few days ago, he said we could spar again," the man explained.

"Oh, well um" Law wasn't sure what to say. "He should be here soon," The man frowned slightly.

"I can wait." he said.

"Well good," Law said. "In the meantime would you like something to drink or anything.?" Law asked; the man simply said.

"That won't be necessary."

Law attempted to start a conversation with the strange but, whenever he asked him a question the man gave one word answers or didn't answer at all and then in the silence all he did was stare at a wall without moving or saying anything. Eventually the door to the dojo opened while Law was in the back, he quickly went to see who it was and to his relief it was Paul.

"Oh good, you're back," Law started. "This man-" he gestured to the Asian man.

"You," Paul spoke, the man turned to him. "Now, _this_ is a surprise."


	27. Paul Phoenix

**Paul Phoenix**

The motorcycle roared at it's loudest and the biker kept his eyes squinted and focused on the road ahead. With a fistful of cash in his pocket, his day was going better than expected, he lauded his unexpected chances in his mind. Fighting tournaments were his expertise and he had just completed another one successfully, the money would help his effort to make open a dojo but, it still wasn't enough.

That was all inconsequential now though, for now he was riding his bike and nothing else mattered. The feel of the wind rapidly blowing across his face and the vibration of the machine under him calmed him. There was a time when his hair used to blow in the wind too but, that was some time ago. Now it was gelled up high above his head, it wasn't a fashion statement but, rather it helped him in his fights. Without the hair in his face he did better in battles, simply cause he could see better.

He tilted to the side slightly and swerved between two cars and continued down the road at a high speed. He took a mental note of the speed limit and compared it his actual speed. He cringed slightly at the difference between the two. Speed laws applied to cars, he rationalized. Motorcycles were meant to go faster and he was utilizing that speed. He also had to get back to the dojo quickly and make the payment with the money he just acquired.

This next payment would hold them off for another month or so but, in the interim there was a huge fighting tournament about to take place. A worldwide tournament that would pay one million dollars to the winner and control of a major cooperation, the latter was good but, for the meantime the million dollars was a much better deal. The money could open up the dojo for good and afford some equipment, then people would come in and pay for a membership and Paul Phoenix would be rich!

A smile crept upon his face at his future. He was sure the tournament would bring a good series of fighters, being worldwide meant he had to drastically improve his skills to combat different fighting styles. To give him the advantage he, Law and another man had entered the tournament with the intention of sharing the wealth. This gave them a tactical advantage in the long run and he felt fairly confident in his ability to win the tournament with his two friends as back up.

His happy reverie was ended when the familiar sound of a police siren broke into it. He looked into his side-view mirror and saw the police motorcycle tailing him. He sneered, he knew he should have slowed down when he noticed he was going twenty over the speed limit. For a moment he considered speeding off but, that wasn't going to work in his favor, so he slowed and pulled over to the side of the road until he came to a complete stop. The cop stopped a little behind him and Paul disembarked from his motorcycle and stood facing the cop as he came closer.

"I'm going to let you guess why I pulled you over Mr. Phoenix," The cop began; Paul gave a weak smile, he hadn't realized he was a name basis with the police.

"I'm pretty sure I was speeding," The cop raised his eyebrows over his aviator glasses. "Or something…" Paul added.

"That's one of them," The cop took out his ticket bad and a pen. "Could you move over here please? We don't want you getting hit or something." The cop gestured for Paul to come closer and he obeyed. Paul rubbed the back of his neck, a nervous habit and watched as the cop wrote out his ticket. After two minutes of silence and writing Paul was shocked to see he was writing an entire book for his ticket.

"How many laws did I break?" Paul asked; The cop looked over his glasses at Paul.

"The better question is how many you _didn't_ manage to break." He informed, Paul cringed and tried to read what the officer was writing.

"Well what did I do besides a little speeding?" Paul asked; the cop stopped writing and looked Paul in the eye, except his were hidden by his aviator glasses. The combination of the look made his expressions all the more harsh.

"A little speeding Mr. Phoenix?" The cop began. "You were going at least twenty-five over the legal speed limit, you swerved between two cars almost causing them to crash, your bike is leaking what, I hope is not, fuel, and you're not wearing a helmet" The cop looked at his hair. "Not that you could but, your strange taste in hairstyles doesn't exempt you from the law Mr. Phoenix" The cop concluded. Paul tried to give the cop a weak smile.

"Yeah, well I'm sorry, I didn't know." He began. "Do I have to get a ticket, why not a warning?" Paul suggested. The cop chuckled loudly and shook his head.

"A warning Mr. Phoenix?" The cop asked. "You realize this is your sixth ticket this month? You're lucky you're not in jail." The cop suggested.

"I guess but, come on I'm trying to start my own business and-" The cop looked on the verge of laughing out loud but, before he could expel his feelings the screech of brakes scraping on the concrete broke through. The two turned quickly to see where the noise was coming from, they were just in time to see the car skid there way, barely missing them but, smacking hard into Paul's motorcycle before continuing to barrel down the road. The motorcycle seemed to explode into several pieces before spinning over twice and coming to an end with a loud smack against the side of a large rock. A moment passed that seemed to last forever as both the officer and Paul watched this unfold and the silence that came after. When the moment was broken the officer quickly ripped the ticket from the book and forced it into Paul's hand, jumped back onto his own bike and roared off.

"Hey wait!" Paul exclaimed as the officer went off in an urgent rage but, his words were drowned out by the motor and furthermore the cop had no interest in wasting anymore time with him.

For the next several minutes cars drove by slowly watching Paul as he surveyed the damage to his motorcycle. Flowing from moments where he seemed to be on the verge of breaking into tears to furiously punching the rock cracking it in several places. The bike was lost, there was nothing he could to fix it by himself so eventually, after having to calm himself, he walked the bike back into town.

It took him an hour and a half to walk back into town and in the process lost several more pieces to his motorcycle, he made his way to his local repair shop and wheeled the bike in slowly.

"Sal!" Paul called out when he got inside, from a backroom a greasy, overweight man, with no charm and whose mouth was twisted as if he was smoking a cigar, probably from too many years actually smoking cigars. He was the kind of man who was totally aware of every droplet of grease on his body but, didn't care and would shake the hand of a clean man regardless.

He scratched through a hole in his shirt and gave Paul what seemed to be a dirty look.

"As much as I like taking your money Phoenix, I really get tired of seeing your face" Sal spoke, even his voice recalled his smoking days, haggard and deeply scared, he sounded as if he was speaking through a parade of phlegm trying to squeeze itself through fine strainer.

"Yeah, well this time it better be a cheap fix," Paul sneered. "I've been coming here for six years now, I deserve some kind of discount or credit." Paul explained.

"Credit?" Sal repeated. "You lucky I don't charge you an inconvenience fee." Sal went on; he swished his tongue out of his mouth in the air for a moment like a grotesque snake wriggling in pain after being torn inside out. "What can I do you for?" he asked coming closer to the young man.

Paul walked the bike closer to the gruff man and turned the damage to face him.

"It was sideswiped about two hours ago." Paul explained; the older, dirty man burst out into a laughter that could only be described as absolute amusement.

"By what, a buzz-saw?" Sal hacked into Paul's face. "Look kid, this ain't repairable." he shrugged and began to walk away.

"You said anything is repairable," Paul protested. "It says that on the sign outside." Sal turned back to young man and nodded.

"You're right, it is repairable," He said more confidently. "But not for how money you've got." He corrected with a chuckle.

"Just tell me how much it would cost." Paul tiredly demanded. Sal gave the bike a half serious look and aloofly answered:

"Five grand at the very least." He answered in a puff of sound.

"Five thousand dollars?" Paul repeated shocked. "That crazy Sal." The grease ape smacked his potbelly and grunted,

"Have you seen that thing?" Sal humored. "It's more of unicycle than anything now." He lightly kicked the bike and several pieces fell off. Paul fell into a squat with each palm over his eyes. He pushed back into his hair and sighed.

"What are you doing to me Sal?" Paul moaned; the owner sighed slightly and looked over the bike a little more carefully.

"Look," the man started. "if you could give me a down payment of a thousand, I might be able to lower the price to four thousand." he bargained, Paul shook his head.

"I don't have a thousand dollars." he admitted. "If you let me pay you five hundred now, I could pay you six thousand in two weeks." Paul suggested; Sal gave a look of complete disbelief.

"Come on Paul, we've known each other for a little while now," he reminded. "How are you going to get six thousand dollars in two weeks?" he asked.

"With these," he raised his fist. "I'm going to make a million bucks." Paul explained. Sal waved the young man off.

"I don't have time for this." Sal dismissed.

"Sal I'm serious," Paul ran up to meet the man eye to eye. "I'm entering this tournament with Law and another guy, it pays out a million dollars to the winner. You know how good I am at fighting." Paul went on, Sal nodded.

"You _are_ good in a fight kid." Sal muttered more to himself than to Paul. "Probably the best I've ever seen-"

"Then do this favor for me, you know I can win this thing." Paul pleaded to the man, Sal turned his back on the young man. Smoking wasn't his only bad habit and he knew that Paul knew that gambling was the other.

"Look, if you don't pay this money, you're going to be in a lot of shit kid." Sal threatened. Paul resisted the urge to jump for joy and went into his pocket. He took out a wad of cash, clearly more than five hundred dollars and gave Sal the agreed upon amount.

"There you go Sal." Paul said as he put the remaining amount of money is his pocket.

"You crook." Sal sneered; Paul shrugged.

"Don't take it personally Sal, I've got a rent to pay." Paul said as he turned out the shop and went running down the street.

When he arrived at the dojo he was surprised with the guest.

He opened the door and both Law and the familiar Asian man turned to meet his eye. Law looked relieved the other looked stoic, the latter turned his body to Paul.

"Oh good your back," Law broke out of, what seemed to be, holding his breath. "This man-"

"Now _this _is a surprise" Paul gave a loud welcome to the Asian man and extended his hand to shake. They shook and Paul was surprised, happily by the force of the grip.

"I decided to take your advice and come by here." the Asian man answered with little emotion. Paul gestured to the dojo.

"How do you like our little establishment?" Paul asked.

"It's not much." The man quickly answered.

"So what brings you here, Mr…" Law interjected. The Asian man seemed to think for a moment as if he had forgotten his name.

"My name is Henry Rao," Rao answered; the skepticism in the other two men's eyes didn't sway him any. "And Paul told me if I wanted to spar again. I found myself drawn to at least come back and see him."

"Oh that's good. We could use some work, we're about to fly out to start our part in this big tournament." Paul admitted. Rao seemed to take particular interest in this.

"The Tekken tournament?" he asked with caution, both Paul and Law nodded.

"That's right, we entered some time ago. We're in separately but, we're going to split the prize money." Paul explained.

"Have you entered?" Law asked; Rao seemed to lose a certain glow in his eye.

"No, I haven't. I don't know where to start" he admitted. Law stepped next to Paul.

"We actually entered with a third guy, he works at the Mishima Zaibatsu and entered us in with the fee wavered." Law explained.

"Hey," Paul perked up. "You're a pretty good fighter, why don't you enter and we'll split the money four ways?" Paul suggested, Rao thought for a moment.

"I would very much like to enter this tournament." He admitted. "I have no problem splitting the money" Rao admitted.

"That's great!" Law exclaimed. "registration is almost over but, I'll call Lee and see what he can do" It was then Rao showed more emotion than either of the two men had seen in him before.

"Lee?" Rao repeated with the kind of emotion a child shows when talking about Santa Clause or something similar. Paul curiously continued.

"Yes, Lee Chaolan," Paul continued. "Law has been training him to fight for some time. Do you know him?" Paul asked. Rao's face folded into the stoic void again.

"No" he answered confidentially.

"Well let me ring him up," Law went on.

"No," Rao quickly demanded with a force that seemed slightly threatening. "I think I should see him personally," he gave a phony smile. "It's a big favor to just ask without him knowing me." Rao went on.

"So what do you want to do?" Paul asked; Rao turned to him.

"There's a Zaibatsu office in this city, does he work there?" Rao asked; Paul nodded.

"He's regional director." Paul answered. Rao nodded, he was in his thoughts.

"I will go to him and ask him myself." Rao explained. Law frowned.

"Are you sure?" he asked. "It would be really is for me to just call and-"

"I'm positive." Rao said as he began walking out. "I'll come back and leave for the starting area with all of you." And he walked out the door. Paul looked at Law.

"Was any of that odd to you?" Law asked; Paul nodded.

"Sure but, what the hell, the guy is an amazing fighter. We've got this million dollars in the bag." He smiled and went into the back to find something to eat.


	28. Lee Chaolan

**Lee Chaolan**

As Lee Chaolan sat in his office, behind his desk he fell into a deep thought. He'd been working in America for a little less than ten years now, he worked as regional manager of this branch of the Zaibatsu, he had a lot of responsibilities and most of all he was bored.

He hadn't seen Heihachi in three years and even that last meeting was barely a true meeting. They said a few words and Heihachi went back to his work in Japan, every so often, like today he would receive a letter from Heihachi. They'd be personally addressed but; about business only, the only personal letters he got were from Wang Jinrei and Jinrei would pass messages along from Heihachi, messages that the old man no doubt made up for his father's silence.

It bothered him, he wanted Heihachi recognize the good work he was doing. When Heihachi told him that he was sending him to America to complete his education and give an entry position at the Zaibatsu he was excited, he felt apart of everything. In the years that followed he was rewarded with promotions, genuinely, Heihachi never interjected with Lee's personal affairs in the Zaibatsu, Lee wasn't treated any differently than any other worker. As regional manager he was really the closest man, outside of Japan, to Heihachi, yet he couldn't have felt further.

So when he took up fighting he thought that that would help him into Heihachi's mind as he was a fighter. He couldn't learn the Mishima arts because the only person who knew the arts were Heihachi. After becoming more advanced in the Jeet Kune Do he wished to go back to Japan to show Heihachi but, that was not to be. The Zaibatsu had grown into a monster of a corporation and his moving would cause a rift in the business, now this fighting tournament was happening. Law and Paul asked him for a way to enter and it wasn't til then did he think about entering himself. As a member of the Zaibatsu he wasn't allowed to enter the tournament. So he registered under an assumed name: Violet. He could enter the tournament and do well and show Heihachi all that he learned and then, hopefully, Heihachi would be surprised and welcome him back to work at a greater role in the Zaibatsu.

The wind from his window blew and a few papers were rustled on his desk, with a quickness and a softness he moved to hold them in place. The air blew behind his ear and he was taken from his thoughts. He still had to find a way to explain his absence from work during the tournament. Everyone was eyeing the tournament, no one in the American branch of the Zaibatsu could understand the point of this Tekken tournament, and from what he was hearing no one in the Japanese branch understood either. The rumors were that Heihachi had lost his mind and locked himself in his office with his secretary Kazi Sumon. Lee secretly despised Kazi, he felt like the job he had should have been his. Even though Kazi was officially, on paper, called a driver everyone knew that Kazi was Heihachi's chief consultant now. Some random guy off the street had managed to befriend one of the world's richest men and snagged a high level and important job. Lee had been working for years, he was just as business savvy as anyone else in the Zaibatsu and more so, he aced all his classes and graduated from college in two years and his masters in three years. So why was he regional director thousands of miles away?

Nevertheless he was here now and now was the time to prove himself, he was an excellent fighter and strong man. Heihachi was too busy to see but, Lee was going to make him notice and astonish his father. In two weeks the world would be a different place for him.

He had plans too, not just dreams to be closer to his father, he had smart reasonable plays that would help the Zaibatsu out. The Jack program was about to be revealed and probably lead to success but, there were flaws in the way it was being presented, Lee saw ways passed those flaws but, he had to get closer to Heihachi in a trustworthy way in for his ideas to be heard.

The truth was with his skill and personality he could run the Zaibatsu on his own, he didn't know if Heihachi knew this, if the man was planning on passing the company on to him or not was still a mystery. The truth was Kazi Sumon seemed to be the only person Heihachi even talked to, his father never went to meetings anymore and spent the majority of his time bouncing from country to country making powerful friends but, somewhat ignoring the ones in his own company. The Zaibatsu was still his main priority but, the way Heihachi was focused worried a lot of people. Lee wasn't necessarily worried about Heihachi's choices but, he wanted to be included in whatever it was Heihachi was planning, especially in regards to this 'Tekken' tournament.

On his desk was a large dossier on this tournament, including rules, participants and some legal matters that probably wouldn't make a difference. A winner had to claim their prize within a week of the completion of the tournament or the prize would be voided, Lee read this over several times. He officially sent a request asking for a response as to who would take over the Zaibatsu in case this happened. They were legally bound to remove Heihachi is he lost the tournament (a portion of the rules that still confused Lee) but, if no one claimed the prize then who would take over?

Usually it would be the board of directors would have to make the choice but, since the Zaibatsu was owned wholly by the Mishima, Heihachi would still have a say in who took over. It could be Lee, if he played his cards right? Who else should it be? He was Heihachi's son and the best candidate.

The letters were addressed from Kazi himself, Lee had met him once but, only for a few minutes. He was cordial enough but, didn't seem to know an ounce about how to run a company like the Zaibatsu. Still yet, Kazi wasn't a horrible person though, if Lee could even get close to him maybe they could work together or something similar. He just needed some-

"Mr. Chaolan? His intercom spoke suddenly; he turned his eyes but, not his body to the machine. His receptionist Martha was a soft spoken woman but, over the intercom her voice was sharp and tactless.

"What is it?" Lee spoke softly while touching the intercom softly. There was a brief pause.

"There's a man here to see you" she announced; Lee looked at his notes for the day, he scanned them three times quickly before responding.

"I don't recall having any meetings today," He said quizzically. "What is this in regards to." There was another pause but, this time Martha was holding the other end of the line open. He could hear the tense atmosphere from in his office and took note.

"He won't say." she said slowly and quietly, Lee frowned. He didn't like surprises but, he didn't feel threatened. Now that he could fight there wasn't much that bothered him and if someone wanted to come and destroy property they certainly wouldn't ask for him.

"Well who is it, Martha?" Lee asked with a slight tinge of anger in his voice. There was another pause, Lee waited in silence as the intercom lay quiet.

"He says his name is Henry Rao." She answered, Lee frowned again. He didn't know anyone with that name but, maybe he was mistaken. In his thinking about it a long moment had passed and Martha's voice returned. "Should I call securi-" She began but, her voice snapped him from his line of thought.

"No, send him in" Lee decided both to himself and to Martha. It probably was some minor detail he had forgotten to iron out or someone he met at a bar or something coming to say hello.

There weren't many problems in this job, people generally were afraid of the Zaibatsu it was a huge power structure but, also it was a fair company, the people had nothing to be upset at it. This branch was active in the community and most people knew the faces that worked there so whoever this man was he wasn't going to pose much of a threat if any threat at all.

The wind blew more strongly from the window and Lee turned in his swivel chair to close it. As he closed the window the door began to open and he swiveled the rest of the way, as he turned he spoke.

"Mr. Rao you'll have to forgive me if I don't remember our first meeting but-" when he was facing the door, his mouth dropped, every bone in his body felt as if it had turned to stone, the words got caught in his throat and the sharpest of chills went down his spine.

Twenty Five years of his life flashed in a second, he felt his heart sink and burn in a fire unquenchable by the greatest sea. And all he could say was:

"Oh my God."


	29. Kazuya Mishima

**Kazuya Mishima**

His thumb rubbed up against his middle finger.

As Lee Chaolan turned in his swivel chair he felt the deepest of nervousness enveloping his entire body.

"Mr. Rao you'll have to forgive me if I don't remember our meeting but-" and then they were facing each other. For the first time in years his eyes were in front of a set that remembered him. Lee's face melted into a mass of confusion, incredulity and shock, his bottom lip slightly quivered and his legs shook. "Oh my God." he seemed to say without control, he leaned over in his chair almost as if he was going to fall over. The air stood still .

"Hello Lee" he said, Lee seemed even more shocked that he wasn't an illusion of some sort, he stood up almost falling over his desk. His thumb and middle fingered danced fiercely.

"Kazuya"

The sound of his own name was so strange and powerful all at once that he almost fell at the sound of it. He hadn't heard it in so long it was perplexing to attach that name to his being. Is that who he was really? He had almost forgotten but, here he was.

"Yes." Kazuya answered. At this Lee stumbled upon himself and threw his body onto Kazuya's and embraced him, Kazuya remained motionless during the process and Lee held the other man away to look at him more in depth.

"I don't believe it!" Lee exclaimed; his confusion permeated in his words. "What happened to you?"

At that Kazuya felt his entire body become rigid and full of apprehension, the memory of his past flowed into his mind and he had to refrain from erupting into a rage.

"_He_ happened" Kazuya tersely answered; he hadn't considered how hard it would be to do this. Things he didn't say in years or at all., so many memories of rage, and fear suddenly swelling into this moment.

"What?" Lee asked with a genuine confusion. "Who?" Lee attempted to clarify. Kazuya hadn't moved from the doorway and the name turned in his head several times. Over and over and over, he had heard it before said by many different people but, he hadn't said it in so long. It held so much contention that even saying it could send his body careening in one direction in an attempt to destroy the feeling the name invoked. He had to learn control, control of the beastly feelings in his heart.

"Heihachi" He sneered, the name fell to the floor of the room and hung there with a deadly silence, Lee could see how painful the name was to Kazuya and for a moment considered not asking further but, what else was there to say?

"What happened?" Lee asked slowly, sinking back into his seat and gesturing Kazuya to do the same. Kazuya didn't he stood and looked passed his adopted brother. His eyes faced forward but, his mind flowed back. He cleared his breath and sighed, unable to start the story in a way that seemed fit.

"He tried to kill me," Kazuya began, his eyes closed and he could smell the rain in the air as he faded back to that day. "The lunatic came after me in the night and tossed me into the ravine," Lee gasped shocked but, quickly caught his emotions as to not interrupt the story. "He had no remorse, he snapped and wished to kill me but, I survived my injuries and have been slumming around since." Kazuya concluded.

"Does he know you-" Lee began.

"No," Kazuya quickly answered. "and he cannot know. I've been very careful not to draw attention to myself and you're the only person who knows I survived." Kazuya explained.

"You seem so…" Lee struggled with the words as to not offend him. "educated, how did you take care of yourself?" Lee asked. Kazuya nodded and told the story frankly.

"I stole everything at first. Food, water, books anything I could. I read as much as I could, books were the only escape I had. the days were always long, hiding my face and lying about who I was. I learned languages and customs from books. I stole from school, then libraries, then universities. I taught myself how to fight and then I took all I needed. I moved from country to country learning everything I could about everything, so there would be a day where I could use the information to finish what he started." Kazuya stopped and Lee was initial perplexed by the sudden end but, eventually caught on to his allusion.

"You want to confront, Father?" Lee instantly regretted his choice of words and Kazuya cringed slightly at it.

"I'm going to kill him Lee." Kazuya insisted. Lee pulled back from the table and his eyes became grave, his white hair fell about his face like a veil of uncertainty.

"Kill?" Lee asked, his face still obscured but, the doubt was clear.

"Yes Lee," Kazuya pressed harder on the man. "I was young, and he tried to kill me, look at what he has done" Kazuya stood and unbuttoned his shirt, when he pulled is apart he revealed a large scar running from just below his shoulder to his abdomen. Out of habit he traced it with a finger feeling the callous and rigid thing, the physical pain had long gone but, every time he felt the unevenness of the flesh that failed to repair itself wholly a flood of memories washed about him in some sort of twisted baptism of anger.

Lee held his hand over his mouth, the scar wasn't grotesque or anything like that but, the reality of what had happened to Kazuya was coming closer to be absolute fact. How could Heihachi have done something like this? And even if there were a reason for him doing it how would it ever be justified. Kazuya was his older brother, they had been together as children for some time, he did care for him and he couldn't imagine this happening to him at that age. Kazuya redid his shirt and sat in silence for a long moment.

"I don't know what to say." Lee admitted; Kazuya stood up straight and brought his focus back to Lee's eyes.

"I have a question" Kazuya began, Lee gestured for him to continue. "What did he say happened to me?" Lee fidgeted uncomfortably.

"He didn't, frankly" Lee revealed. "I was never in the position to barter with him. The few times the subject came up he waved it off and went on to something else. Later on in life I would find that he kept your disappearance under wraps, he somehow related it to Jinpachi's disappearance-" Before he could finish Kazuya's attentions were snagged.

"Jinpachi?" Kazuya said, with the curiosity of a young boy. For that moment he looked just as he did as a child.

"It happened around the same time," Lee explained, he thought very hard to recall as many details as he could. "Jinpachi was just gone one day, the official reports are sealed but, from what I remember whatever happened to him was supposed to be what happened to you." Lee went on; for a moment Kazuya seemed to withdraw as if he wasn't still in the room. Lee saw this it was odd; it was as if he had become a totally different person for one slight moment.

"He must have killed him too," Kazuya growled under his breath.

"But, how?" Lee began. "Jinpachi was the strongest person I have ever seen." Kazuya shifted in his chair and sat in a way the exuded confidence.

"Heihachi is powerful," his tone sunk into a cautionary one. "More powerful than either of us can truly imagine. If he is not stopped he will steamroll over everything." Kazuya explained. At this Lee sighed and seemed uneasy.

"I don't know how you expect to do this…"Lee began. "How do you expect to get close to Heihachi?" Lee asked; Kazuya leaned closer over the desk.

"His Tekken tournament," Kazuya simply answered. "I need you to enter me into the tournament and I will get to him that way." Lee shook his head emphatically.

"That's not going to work," he answered surely. "the moment you place he will know who you are. This tournament is just a guise for something, I don't know what it is but, he's watching every last participant closely. You won't be able to throw a punch before he knows who you are, where you are and what you're doing." Lee explained.

"I will deal with that, I just needed the fee to be paid and an alias to go under." Kazuya explained; Lee quickly fumbled through some papers and scratched his head.

"The fee I can pay myself but, the alias is going to be much harder." Lee confessed. "He's doing an extensive background check for every participant, like I said he's looking for something or someone." Kazuya handed Lee an I.D. card and Lee looked over it perplexed. It had Kazuya's face and detailed information for a 'Henry Rao'

"Even if you had your named legally changed, he'll unseal the records on this name and see its you." Lee explained.

"I didn't have my name changed." Kazuya explained tersely; for a moment Lee sat confused but, then it came to him.

"If Rao was reported missing Heihachi will know," Lee explained. "He has powerful contacts."

"By the time it would take Heihachi to find out that the real Henry Rao was dead, I will have already made my move. I've been using this name for years and have not had a problem with any law officials, in any country." Kazuya explained; Lee looked him straight in the eyes and started to nod.

"I hope you're sure," he said as he pulled another paper out from his desk, he quickly scribbled on it and checked some boxes, he then passed it to Kazuya. "Sign that." Lee said quickly, Kazuya took the paper and read it over before signing the bottom of the page in his Henry Rao signature and slid the paper back to Lee. Lee looked over it and walked over to his fax machine and turned it on, without turning back to Kazuya he spoke.

"I'm going to fax this to his office right now," Lee explained. "Someone is always there, if this request is denied all I have to do is wait until I hear from him myself and request an inquiry. He won't contest it, he never does." Lee put the paper in the machine and it buzzed as the paper slowly copied and came out the other side. Lee stood there for a long moment waiting for the reply, eventually it came. The buzz of the machine was as if fate itself was speaking in a dialect they couldn't understand but, desperately needed to decode. In silence the two waited as a new piece of paper arrived and Lee read over it.

"You're in luck," Lee explained. "Kazi is there now, he sent this back," he began to read. "Lee, these last minute orders are becoming a hassle. The tournament starts in a couple of days and eleventh hour changes are not smiled upon. Either way your request has been approved pending the fee being paid. Please send Mr. Rao Heihachi's regards and best wishes. Kazi Sumon." Lee folded the paper.

"So I'm in?" Kazuya asked; Lee nodded.

"As soon as I draft the order of payment, yes." Lee explained. Kazuya Mishima sat back in his chair.

"It's almost time," Kazuya spoke more to himself than to Lee. "I've waited so long and its almost time."

"It won't be easy Kazuya," Lee snapped him back into reality. "Not only is there Heihachi to worry about but, some of the best fighters from the world are coming to this tournament," Lee explained. "And even if you win, what happens then? What happens to this company?" Lee asked; quickly Kazuya answered.

"I have no interest in this company," Kazuya explained. "All I want is Heihachi, if I win I will pass the company to you." Kazuya added; Lee felt his heart burn in excitement. The chance to _run_ this company? It was all he could ask for.

"I feel as if we're doing something wrong Kazuya." Lee admitted; Kazuya nodded.

"I know but, his treachery has to be dealt with," Kazuya began. "Look how he has you here. He ships you out halfway across the world to be nothing but, a trickle down secretary when you should be under his wing? Meanwhile he has some other servant working closely with him taking your place. Do you think its coincidental? He hates us Lee, he fears who we will become. How we will take the company from him just as he did to his father." Kazuya explained; Lee watched the ground and didn't say anything for a long while.

"Where will you go in the meantime?" He asked his older brother; Kazuya waved off the question.

"It doesn't matter," Kazuya dismissed. "Make the payment, the next time you see me we will be in the Zaibatsu." He stood up, Lee extended his hand to shake and they did.

"Be careful" Lee warned, Kazuya turned away but, looked over his left shoulder and said:

"You too"


	30. Heihachi Mishima

**Heihachi Mishima**

The sun shone through the large glass windows that made up the side wall of the Mishima Zaibatsu's top floor. At his desk Heihachi Mishima looked over some papers with a grim face, the sun on the side of his face was warm and despite the stuck position of his grimace his mind felt ripe with excitement. Breaking his silence was the door opening and Kazi walking in with a steady stride, Heihachi looked over his glasses as the young man came closer and then went back to his papers briefly. Kazi sat in the chair across from Heihachi's desk and took a folder and placed it neatly on his lap, he waited in silence for Heihachi to finish his reading.

"As many reports as I get Kazi, none are ever that important or interesting." Heihachi finally spoke; Kazi shrugged and gave a smile.

"We keep you abreast on all the boring things, Abel gets all the interesting work now" He explained, Heihachi grunted in amusement, the thought of Abel was amusing in itself.

"Right, I forgot about that." Heihachi muttered. Kazi slapped the folder on Heihachi's desk.

"Are you excited?" Kazi asked with a big grin; Heihachi nodded genuinely.

"Very, tomorrow is going to prove to be an interesting day" He admitted.

"It really is, the last of the reports are in and I thought you might want to see one in particular." Kazi explained; he opened the folder and took out a paper and handed it to Heihachi.

"Alright," Heihachi leaned over and took it and read it silently for a moment. "So she's the one." Heihachi said after a moment.

"Indeed she is," Kazi spoke confidentially. "Her name is Nina Williams, she, apparently, is one of the top assassins in the world. She's been working for years in the business and there's a great degree of secrecy around her. She's the daughter of Richard Williams-" Kazi started.

"Richard?" Heihachi asked. "I'll be damned, he had kids?" Heihachi asked.

"Yes, two" Kazi confirmed.

"He was a good man, I was stunned to find out he had been killed." Heihachi remembered.

"Yes, well" Kazi went on. "She apparently vanished after his death and resurfaced a couple of years later, kidnapped by a crime syndicate, she killed the leader and became the target of a small band of remnants from the group. She spent the next few years hiding and running until eventually every last known person from the group went missing or was found dead. Since then she's been a gun-for-hire and responsible for the deaths of many prominent members of society. She is an expert in Aikdo and apparently was sponsored by the same company that is entering our 'Jack' into the tournament." Kazi explained; Heihachi read the dossier closely and nodded.

"Do we know where she's staying?" Heihachi asked; Kazi frowned.

"Not until around the fifth round," Kazi started. "She has booked anything until a few days from now." Kazi explained.

"Where is that?" Heihachi asked.

"In Japan," Kazi passed him another paper. "I'm assuming this is going to be the day she makes her move." Kazi explained; Heihachi nodded.

"Anything else?" Heihachi asked. Kazi Shrugged.

"Not really," Kazi sighed, "We know about the JACK, when we have Williams in custody we'll find out who hired her. Other than that it looks like a good batch of fighters, should be interesting to see who comes out on top at the end." Kazi smiled.

"It seems your quite excited too," Heihachi said amused by Kazi's light heartedness. "Maybe you want to enter." Kazi's smile dropped.

"No, but, A good fight will be fun to watch," Kazi explained. "Most of these participants are the top of their league." Kazi explained. Heihachi leaned back in his chair and let out a hearty laugh.

"Yes," he agreed. "It will be interesting to see who comes out on top and finally we will have some answers about my aggressors." Heihachi explained.

"I still think you should reconsider your role in all of this," Kazi became more serious. "They're going to be after you, putting yourself out there is only putting yourself in danger." Heihachi lightly cut Kazi off as he spoke.

"I know, I know," he groaned. "but, my father used to tell me that if you wanted to catch a fish you had to use bait that was worth it" Heihachi recited. Kazi shrugged and smiled anyway.

"We've been at this for a long time now," He said. "I can't believe this is it." Heihachi nodded and ran his hand through the, now completely, bald spot on his head.

"I know, I lost my hair stressing over it," Heihachi joked. "but, we're about to reveal our enemies, there's really nothing that can stand in our way."

It was then that Heihachi's intercom buzzed quietly and leaned over the relay to hear his secretaries voice.

"It's Abel" She said simply; every time she spoke there was a tinge of pain in his heart. He got over it quickly and responded.

"Send him in, thanks." Kazi picked up the reports and put them back into the folder just as the door behind him creaked open and closed. Abel walked in and quickly made his way to the chair next to Kazi. He eyed the young man for some time and grunted without saying anything.

"Abel," Kazi greeted; the older man eyed him again and felt obligated to respond.

"Sumon," he said barely audible. The two men had repaired their relationship slightly, after the commission of Prototype Jack Abel had a new respect for Sumon for spearheading his project to Heihachi. Since then Heihachi left most of the dealings with Abel to Kazi and the two of them learned to talk more to each other. Abel was still stand offish at times however.

"Those are the last reports?" Heihachi asked; referring to the papers in Abel's hands. Abel nodded and put them on the desk for Heihachi to read.

"This will be the last report for the Prototype Jack, aside from the field test." Abel explained. "All the test came out perfect, it is a fine specimen and will work beyond its projected reports." Heihachi nodded and flipped through the reports.

"And the skin?" Heihachi asked; Abel fidgeted with obvious anger.

"We haven't been able to get to that Mr. Mishima," Abel said barely able to hold his tongue. "We've been working on making this project perfect not catering to your personal cosmetic concerns." Kazi chuckled.

"So how are we going to enter it in the tournament?" He asked. "We just can't entire a six foot robot and expect people to not complain."

"I don't intend to use the JACK for the entire tournament" Heihachi revealed; both men turned with surprise in their face.

"What?" Abel hissed.

"I need to make sure I don't scare off my competitors in this tournament," Heihachi began slowly. "They have to be lulled into thinking they can actually defeat me. We have the battle plan for the other Jack, we're going to let it participate in round one to see how it works then we'll enter the Prototype Jack against it in round two. We'll see what happens depending on if it wins or not." Heihachi explained.

"It will win," Abel said confidently. "Whoever has made this other JACK doesn't have the technical expertise that I do." Abel explained; Kazi nodded.

"I've seen this thing in some test," he began. "It really isn't like anything I've seen before. Abel has outdone himself." Kazi complimented; the older man beamed.

"Well thank you Mr. Sumon," Abel began. "This project has given me the chance to test my skill." Abel complimented back. Heihach leaned back in his chair.

"Good, almost everything is set." He said. "We'll be able to have a live feed of the JACK's experience correct?" Heihachi asked.

"The uplink has had issues," Abel confessed. "The satellite the Japanese government has in space isn't sufficient. If the Zaibatsu created one however we could beam all the transmission from JACK's to one station and track them that way." Abel suggested.

"That sounds expensive," Kazi muttered; Abel shrugged with no interest in money.

"Get the Japanese or whomever to pay for it.," He suggested. "When they see what these JACK's can do they'll be throwing money at you."

"I hope you're right." Heihachi declared "We've been angling for this government contract for years now. If we got one it would set is over the edge. The government would be paying us to sell to them. The Zaibatsu would be the most powerful force in all of Asia." Heihachi explained.

"Then we could finally make some moves, end some wars. Create some stability across the land." Kazi made a sweeping motion with his hand, Abel shrugged.

"Your political ideals mean nothing to me," Abel spoke. "I've seen Hitler storm through countries and burn them to the ground, peace is a fleeting momentary thing." He stood up.

"I won't be around to see you until after the tournament is complete." Heihachi spoke to Abel, the older man nodded and shrugged.

"That's fine by then I will have all the reports done." He explained. "Then we'll see the future of the JACK program."

"Indeed," Heihachi nodded. "I will see you then." Heihachi bid Abel a farewell and the old man left.

Heihachi tapped his fingers on the desk and thought to himself for a moment.

He was a young man when this had all started, he had goals to create Mishima Heavy Industries and it came true but, with that came an issue he never could have foreseen. Factors out in the world were closing in to destroy him, he recalled the day he found the JACK skeleton on the barge. Almost fifteen years ago now, so many things had changed and at the time he wasn't sure he was going to be able to make things change. Here he was now though, grown, bald and on the verge of making his dreams solidified. He had set up a trap so perfect and now his enemies were going to spring it all at once. In one fell swoop he was going to end decades of madness and death.

"The future is here Heihachi," Kazi said so on par with Heihachi's thought that the older man could have surmised he was reading his mind. "You did it." Heihachi turned his face to the huge windows that looked at downtown Japan. The sun engulfed the room, it was warm and comforting. Heihachi felt at ease, for a moment he felt as if he was back at Hon-Maru, in nature. He could almost could smell the trees and the stream and the animals. Like Kuma, who had grown to be quite the large bear but, loyal beyond Heihachi's expectations. For that one moment Heihachi felt like he did when he was a young man. He smiled at the thought that in two weeks this would all be over, in two weeks he would have revealed his true enemies and faced them face to face.

In two weeks everything would be different.


	31. Law Breaker

**Law Breaker**

The letter read:

_Dear participant,_

_ We are pleased to write you to say that you have been selected to be in the first round of the King of Iron Fist tournament. You are to report to the address attached to the underside of this letter at the time recorded. From there you will meet with a non-partisan mediator who will verify your identity, once verified you will have 1 (one) half hour to complete your battle. If you have completed your round in the time allotted and are the victor your victory will be recorded, officially and you will receive a notice at the P.O. box assigned to you on your next round. _

_ If you do not complete your battle within 1 (one) half hour, your battle will be considered a draw in which case you both will move on to the next round, if that round is successfully completed the two will be rematched in the next round after._

_ All participants have the right to forfeit at anytime. If you decide to forfeit you cannot reenter the tournament. If you forfeit and your opponent does not acknowledge your forfeit they will be held in accordance of the rules and disqualified as well._

_ Be safe, good luck and fight well._

_ -Heihachi Mishima_

She read the note several times and the address and the time. She had time to relax for a good while before leaving. She combed her blonde hair with her hand and stretched out her fingers. It had been a long time since she fought someone hand to hand before, it was going to be good going toe to toe. Hopefully the first round would be interesting, if not it was on with the job.

She cracked her knuckles and decided to leave early, all this waiting was making her bitter.

On the opposite side of town the same letter arrived to a different person. The man read the letter and left in good time to arrive at the meeting point anxious to see his first opponent.

When he arrived he was surprised to see a lean woman, with blonde hair standing there waiting for him, when he was in her sight she looked at a watch to exaggerate how long she had been waiting. He walked up to her with a smile and extended his hand to shake hers.

"A pleasure to meet you," he started. "My name is Marshall Law" The woman looked him up and down with total skepticism, before offering him a limp hand shake.

"Nina." she simply replied shortly; he nodded understandingly and looked around.

"This tournament is amazing," He said with an amused charm, which simply disgusted her. "They fly us out to the most amazing places in the world and we get to fight with some amazing fighters and against different styles," he paused dramatically and closed his eyes, she rolled hers. "It's a fighters dream."

"I'm sure." Nina answered, she sighed loudly. "Let's get to it shall we?" She asked. Law was slightly taken aback by Nina's brazen nature but, he nodded and gave her a small bow.

"Alright." he answered; he stretched and Nina walked back to give him his space and stood in silence. Eventually law stood up straight and entered a defensive position. "I won't go easy on you cause you're a woman." He said lightheartedly and with a smile, Nina rolled her eyes.

"The feeling is mutual" she sneered; the slur went over his head and she went into a ready position.

"Here I come!" Law yelled playfully as he ran towards Nina.

When close enough he threw a punch but, Nina turned her body and with the momentum from her turn slammed the butt of her palm into Law's face. Taken totally aback by the harshness of the blow, his body stumbled back and he held both hands to his face. When he removed them he found Nina, she threw two more blows in his direction but, this time he blocked swiftly and threw himself down sweeping her legs with a powerful spin with his feet.

Nina fell hard but, ignored the pain, sending her foot careening into his leg, quickly she stood and sent her elbow into his stomach, he folded over just as she took grip onto his wrist and pulled hard, sending his body flipping over to hit the ground. Anticipating the grapple Law through his weight forward and flipped himself far enough to land on his feet. The volley left Nina surprised and in the time Law sent his left foot back to kick.

Thinking quickly she grabbed hold of his foot and twisted his foot sending him spinning off beside her. His body flipped in the air several times before he landed callously on his right foot and regained his balance. Nina let up, allowing him to catch himself. He breathed heavy with the weight of the battle catching up to him, he looked at Nina with the eyes of a warrior. He was used to fighting great fighters but, instantly this was a different situation all together. This woman wasn't holding anything back, or at least he hoped she wasn't.

Law shook his head and regained his focus and began to hop up and down on his feet. This time Nina came to him, she threw her hands forward to his face and with lighting like speed he took her hand and threw it to the side. Her whole bodied followed and before she could rebound, he sent the back of his fist into her back, she stumbled forward a bit. She threw her foot back but, made contact with nothing, Law threw his body back, landing on his hands and remained there for a second or two then pushed off them landing back on his feet.

When he was in front of her, she grabbed his arm and pulled it forward whilst pushing her shoulder into his chest. The result knocked the wind out of Law and made his shoulder pop audibly, he fell back and took note at the pain in his shoulder was not easing put getting worse. He rolled his shoulder, Nina took note of that and grinned. She dashed forward and before she could attack Law propelled himself into a back flip that completely caught her off guard. His propelled legs landed sloppily upon her breast and she was knocked back onto the ground hard.

Before she could get up, Law was sending his heel raining down upon her, she rolled out the way and used his disposed position to her advantage. She grabbed his ankle between her two arms and twisted roughly, Law cursed in pain, using his leg as a crutch she stood up and slammed her elbow into his knee. The connection of her bone on his send pain through her body but, nothing like the pain that went through his, she pushed him away instead of continuing the attack.

He stood but, not with the same confidence, this time he rolled his shoulder, his ankle and kicked out his knee. She raised an eyebrow at his movements pleased with herself.

Law cursed madly in his mind, his shoulder, his ankle and his knee were burning with pain. A searing pain as if they were slowly being torn apart. His resolve grew however, he could _not_ lose the first round. He rolled his neck and went back into a defensive position, just as Nina took her hands off her hips and did the same.

He came forward and gave her a false kick, leaning his knee out, she flinched to block the knee but, quickly it was back down and a fist was thrown, it landed squarely on her cheek, he tossed his body into a spin allowing himself to gain momentum as the back of his fist came with speed to her head but, she was too quick on the rebound. The first landed painlessly in her hand and her other hand onto his wrist. He tried to remove his wrist from her grip but, she wrapped his wrist into the inside of her elbow. She slammed her arm down and pushed his hand up, forcing the bone below and above the wrist joint in two different directions.

Initially nothing happened, aside from Law grunting madly. She continued to push them in polar directions. in opposition Law snapped kicked her ankle and her shoulder but, she didn't relent. Despite the pain Law moved his body back to make room to kick into her stomach, seeing his positioning Nina made a series of quick movements.

The first was her pulling his arm around her shoulders as if embracing him warmly but, there was nothing warm about it, his kick landed nowhere and ended whatever balance he had. Sharply she pulled the arm down on her shoulders and her shoulders up, forcing the two bones into an unnatural contact. Secondly she took his arm and laid it across her chest. Her left arm locked his arm into place and her right pushed his arm across her chest as she pushed her chest out. The crack of his arm was so harsh it even startled Nina initially but, she didn't stop, lastly she put her left hand in the joint that connected his shoulder and pushed forward as she pulled it back. The shoulder snapped with no problem and she released Law to stumble forward in pain. He grabbed his arm with his other and winced horribly; he shook his head and held up his arm.

"No more" He pleaded; Nina sighed and put her hands down. "I think you broke my arm" He called to her.

"I know I did," Nina said. "You should get that checked out." she dryly suggested. Law looked disappointed but, sighed.

"I guess I forfeit this fight," he admitted. "You won fair and square" Nina shrugged and began to walk away and passed Law, as she walked by, he extended his good arm for a handshake. "Maybe one day we'll meet again and have a rematch"

Nina walked right passed his hand and flipped her hair.

"You should hope we don't."


	32. Tribal Passions

**Tribal Passions**

As she walked away from her defeated opponent, Michelle Chang felt a slight bit of disappointment run through her body. The adrenaline ceased to pump as feverishly in her body and her muscles relaxed, her senses came about her again and she sighed into the distance. She was done with the first part all she had to do was replicate her results seven more times and then she'd be ready to complete what she had started.

For a moment she could hear her father's voice trying to coo her into being content again but, the feeling slowly descended into a dark rage she couldn't let go. Her backpack was heavy with all the weight of the responsibilities she had to fulfill, all those demons manifested in two things. The pendant she took from the excavation site, now the last remaining memento of her father, a piece of him that would luster on despite the finality of his life and an axe. The axe she planned to murder Heihachi Mishima with.

It was such an ugly thought, that it scared her. The fact that she could conceive the thought and even more so that she was here now putting it into action. Could she be a murderer? It was against everything she was taught, it wasn't how she was raised but, what else was there to do, in a couple of minutes Heihachi Mishima ripped away whatever happy life she had and for what? For some stupid treasure that was worth money? Her father was worth more than whatever the price that pendant could fetch at some auction.

He had to be avenged, her pride wouldn't allow for a cold hearted murderer to get away unscathed by some form of justice. The axe in her backpack was her grandmother a woman who fought in an ugly war with American settlers. She was a warrior and it only made sense to use a warriors weapon to deal righteousness.

Yet still her heart was heavy, almost every fiber in her being was felt ashamed and wrong, she felt at any moment she could run off in the opposite direction, back to her little house and just cry the rest of her life. Her hand shook violently, out of control; she clutched them into a fist and shook her head to keep the tears from running down her face. She felt so conflicted, she couldn't tell if she was honoring her father's name or desecrating it anymore. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her fist to wipe away the beginning of a new set of tears. For a moment she walk blindly and when she reopened her eyes, nothing had changed.

The world was still the same world she wanted to escape, the street was the same, she was still in this stupid tournament, her father was still dead and Heihachi Mishima was still alive.

Yet the world kept moving. It moved quickly and relentlessly without any pause as if nothing had happened, as if her suffering wasn't enough to make someone stop and think. People moved about the city, like mindless dolls, coming, going, running, walking, getting away from things, finding things, laughing, crying, screaming, whispering, some came to the city to live, some came to the city to die, some brought things in, some took things out, some looked ahead of them, some were always looking back, or up at the sky, or down at the ground, the ground that was paved over, the pavement, hard and black without any quality of the natural Earth. And she stood there do all those things and none of those things at the same time.

She stood there both watching the people and trying not to watch the people, walk aimlessly and seemingly unaware that just less than a foot away there was another suffering soul next to them. It bothered her, this wasn't how it was back home, she had never seen people so detached before, death could be walking in front of them and they wouldn't give him a second glance, they'd just go on, looking at their beepers and listening to their music in their ears always somewhere else, even when they found the place they wanted they were always somewhere else, never here.

They escaped this world, all of its unfortunates eccentricities, they were somewhere where only they had existed, where for a moment they were invincible, because even now if a car pulled off the road and plowed into them with the force of a meteor against the naked brown Earth, they would be smacked into oblivion without knowing and their beepers would beep and their walkmans would play music endlessly. It was a cruel and _real_ would out there, some knew, some didn't and some had learned to forget.

She sighed as a tear began to burn in her eye, she thought about it as its own entity and insisted that it did not fall, that if it did, there would be consequences unknown and it obeyed. Gathering herself she pressed her clothes and began to walk into the street with the mindless drones, in her heart she made a silent prayer not to become like that when she entered their swift, beeping current.

She stepped forward.

"Excuse me, miss?" Her foot stalled inches from the river of bliss, its ebb snapped at her foot threatening to pull her in, she watched it for a moment, ignoring the man's voice. "Miss?" he called again, this time her reverie snapped like a rubber band pulled to its limit. She stepped back and put her foot back on the pavement and turned to face the man.

When she did, she was taken aback slightly. He was tall, tall and dark. His skin shone in the sunlight the way beautiful wooden floors in expensive homes did, and it was black but, not black in a way that some consider being strange or unattractive, his skin was almost purple like an eggplant. It was majestic, like the kind of jewel one found in a beautiful ancient kingdom. He smiled at her when he turned and in contrast sported equally beautiful white teeth. He worse glasses about his face, sunglasses, so his eyes were obscured, though she could make the slightest inclination of a cut above his left eye.

His glasses weren't like the others though, she saw plenty of people in the street wearing sunglasses, escaping the beautiful sun, or just trying to achieve a new level of anonymity in a faceless crowd. His glance behind the glasses gave him away and he looked as if he knew it, not that he was trying to escape something but, as if with the glasses he was trying to regain something.

"Yes?" Michelle asked; caution wriggling its way over the admiration in her voice; he smiled again and began to talk.

"I hope you don't mind but, I saw your match and wanted to congratulate you on you victory as well as compliment you on your skills." It was then that she noticed a slight accent in his voice, Spanish and something else, something familiar.

"Thank you," she bowed slightly out of habit. "Are you participant in the tournament?" She asked, he nodded.

"As a matter of fact I am," he began. "I've been in two rounds already; I have some time before my next match, I would love it if we could sit for something to eat," Michelle made a weary face that he noticed. "I only ask because I notice the feathers and patterns on your clothes and they appear to be that of the Ohapi tribe." The mention of the tribe did catch Michelle's attention she perked up as if it was the first thing she had heard in years.

"Oh do you know the tribe?" she asked; he nodded again.

"I've come across them over the years," he paused. "I was just wondering why a young Ohapi woman would be in the big city, not to mention a vicious fighting tournament." Her eyes narrowed at his question and beyond her gaze he frowned.

"It's a long story." she somewhat muttered, the way a child does when admitting guilt. He smiled and it was only then did she realize the was wearing a suit and tie.

"I've got a lot of time," He coaxed and for some reason she felt as if she could trust him, she could hear the river of bliss buzzing and beeping behind her and like any strong current river it was better to go with someone else.

"Sure" he smiled again and took her into the river without the slightest inclination of fear.

They found a small diner a few blocks away and sat at an outdoor table watching the masses walk aimlessly, probably off a cliff. He spoke first.

"Yes, I've been with the Ohapi tribe before, I'm Jenuaki myself." He admitted; he took a sip of his water. "You might not know us but we're-"

"Nomads," Michelle finished. "I've seen your tribe before, or at least a division of it, I've never seen you." As she finished the words, she thought she sounded rude put her head down.

"I'm Mexican, I usually stay in Mexico, the American Jenuaki are a bit different from us." He chuckled.

"They were nice," she thought back to when he small tribe stayed just outside the limits of their tribal limits. "Quiet" he chuckled again.

"Yes, we are not a loud people," He said. "I did not recognize your fighting style. I thought the Ohapi trained in the tribal martial arts." he inquired; she nodded.

"They do, my father was Chinese, he taught me Kenpo of that region instead." She explained, the man nodded.

"I see, the Ohapi are good fighters but, you displayed a different kind of skill." He complimented, Michelle blushed a bit.

"thank you." she said. "And you? Do the Jenuaki have a fighting style?" she asked. He combed his sleek black hair, that flowed languidly just beyond his shoulders, with his hand.

"We do, it's nothing very technical. Just some basic defense maneuvers." he explained. "But, I don't use it in actual fights." he explained; she cocked her head to the side in curiosity.

"What do you use?" She asked; He sat back in his seat.

"I'm a wrestler," he admitted. "I hadn't thought of using the style against advanced martial arts before but, it's been working well." he admitted.

"A wrestler?" she asked the slightest bit of disappointment in her voice. "Are you like one of those T.V. wrestlers?" She asked; this question made him laugh strongly.

"No, no," he repeated. "I fight for sport and honor. World you see on television if very different from the world I live in. It's a lot more dangerous and not as glamorous." he admitted, there was pause, the people on the street kept walking, looking into a different world. "So, what brings you into this tournament?" the man asked; Michelle for a moment and thought of a way to tell him without being totally honest.

"I want to win so I can defeat Heihachi Mishima," She started, initially thinking this was going to be enough to settle his question but, when she looked at him he seemed to be waiting for more. "and to avenge my father's murder." She admitted; the man nodded, he didn't seem surprised or upset by this. It was almost as if he expected it.

"Did Heihachi have something to do with it?" he asked, she stared at the people walking when she answered, into a void.

"Yes," she answered; she paused again, remembering why she was here, she hadn't said it aloud before. "Heihachi wanted something that belong to my tribe and my father wanted to protect it and when Heihachi couldn't get what he wanted he sent men to come and murder my father and take it away from him." She told him but, she told herself and she told the void, she told that woman across the street in her high heel shoes running after a taxi cab. She told the man looking at his watch for a long time trying to make it go back. They didn't react, she didn't react.

"Revenge is a powerful force." The man started; she turned to him, surprised of his reaction. He spoke to her with an understanding, she expected everyone to tell her to stop, that it wasn't worth it. Was he going to tell her this? "It drives us forward until we reach it and then it drops out and all that's left is the adrenaline in your body and your forced to make a choice." He said.

"What kind of choice?" she asked; He rubbed the back of his neck.

"You or him." he said simply. "You're going to see that he's a human being and a mortal and you're going to wonder if what you're about to do is going to turn you into the same monster he is." He talked methodically and watched her, as she watched the people.

"And I suppose, I shouldn't want to be that monster?" she asked. His eyebrows lifted.

"I don't know," he answered truthfully. "If you want the revenge that bad, what does it matter what you become in the end? You can always become better after, mend your life. You'll have all the time in the world and the added benefit of not being haunted by the person who did wrong to you." He answered; she turned to him, his answer was surprising.

"You're telling me I _ should_ kill Heihachi Mishima?" She asked excited that some validation may come of her plans but, he shook his head.

"I'm saying that, people think revenge as selfish and it is but, in this world it's you versus someone else and the gift of charity is never required of you. You owe it to no one." He explained. She sat thinking for a moment, trying to process his words.

"I don't know what I want anymore…" she admitted. He nodded.

"I know, I'm here for the same reasons almost." The man admitted.

"Really?" she asked; her voice was quiet and longing.

"Yes but, not to kill Heihachi Mishima," he corrected. "Someone in this tournament did something to me a long time ago and I haven't found a way to forgive him. So my only option is to seek him out and take something from him. It will please me." He answered; She rubbed her hands on her lap.

"And if it doesn't?" she asked; he shook his head.

"Then the issue wasn't with him in the first place," he spoke surely. "Something in my self is lacking and I would need to figure it out and amend it. But if I never tried my hand at stopping him, then I would never know." He answered, this time she nodded, understanding, her left hand lightly graced the pendant she wore.

"I guess I'll know when I'm face to face with Mishima." she admitted, he agreed silently.

"That would be a prime time." he spoke.

Then the sat in silence, there was nothing really to be said, they both were digesting the information that they put out. For a moment they were the only two people in the world and the flowing ebb of blissful stupidity vanished. When the moment was over she looked up and saw the sun had set far into the horizon.

"Time has moved beyond us." the man spoke before she could, she nodded.

"I'll have to move now, if I want to make my next round." She admitted.

"I know." he smiled; she stood up and tried to pay for their time but, he shook his head.

"Hopefully, we'll meet in the tournament and be able to discuss things further." She said to him, he smiled a different smile, this one full of confidence.

"My dear, if we do meet again in this contest," he started. "You won't recognize it's me."


	33. Jacks of All Trades

**JACK(s) of All Trades**

A spark.

A spark in a void, darkness and nothingness holding themselves together with the might of Atlas and a determination strong as the greatest rock in history and in the flash of an instance broken apart by the smallest spark. A million different particles, invisible to the eye and the tools of modern science, as real as pain but, as mysterious as engrams, throwing themselves against each other in a violent declaration of life and usefulness, shattering that grip with the slightest of ease. Flowing down the complex and unique circuitry and running forever into, through and away from time.

The spark does not think, it does not need to it moves and moves and procreates, more sparks, a hundred, a thousand, ten-thousand, fifty-thousand, One-million, more! All collecting together and knowing each other, their likeness, their differences, all in a space tinier than the tip of the finest blade.

Together they created something, a single thought but, not like a human thought. This thought was programmed it came from another collection of sparks. The thought collected and hung in the void suspended in nothing, hanging effortlessly and waiting for action. From its bundles of sparks it extended into a body an infinite chain of sparks holding on to themselves and binding into a collection, the beginning indistinguishable from the end.

Time flowed on and as the body of life began to spark into existence. It did not need to think, yet, execution was key and thus so was timing. It only needed to stand there and continue to be the dead-live thing that it was until the right time came and complete its focus without hesitation and without failure.

It stood over six feet tall, the dead-live thing, its body shining, the sunlight reflecting off it metallic body. It wore boots that touched the black dirt on the ground. The point where it touched the ground nature met science. A strange meeting of two different worlds, both aloof of the others existence, the trees did not care that it was there and it wasn't aware that the trees were there. It neither felt the wind or the sun, it could hear, the birds, the small chipmunks scurrying around but, it did not process them that way. Just another sound, different from the others but, not in worth just different all together, there were no emotions behind its being here, it did not feel the aura of nature calling it, pulling it in. The relief from being from the 'real world' did not permeate through its skeleton; it did not puncture its electronic heart. The sparks that made up its mind did not pulsate at a sudden joy of being back where it all began, simply because it did not begin here.

It's home was in various places, it was in a power plant, on a slab of rusted and melded metal. The smell of melting and burning and chemicals flowing in the air, the slight taste of sulfur and flame dancing on the tongue, a small fog of destroyed metal and ash hugging vision. Its home was in the hands of a worker, who pulled the circuitry and pushed its innards into place and sweated over its body, year after year, failed attempt after failed attempt until finally something of worth was crafted and then the hands clutched for dear life and then crafted again and again until success was worth and until worth was satisfaction and until satisfaction was perfection.

It's home was in the mind of a genius. Starting as a simple idea and rolling over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over until it was something more complex than imagination. Something only this genius couldn't understand and hold, he cradled it like a child and gave, stole, borrowed, created and destroyed parts of it over many years, countless months, a gaggle of days, insurmountable hours, a plethora of minutes and an infinite amount of seconds. Each one crafting more and more until it became its own being, without a body, without a soul, without a mind but, living nonetheless. A living-dead thing that walked the Earth with focus and purpose, a creature created by the finite Godliness of man, a perfect adaptation of man correcting Adam's folly.

And yet, here it was. Standing in a forest; a Non-man acting as the future of man. A perverse tangible representation of man's indignant need to be all powerful, to be God of the world he lived in. It stood but, did not stand, standing was of will, it was propped up by orders, orders that it _must_ obey because it did not know any better. There it was, six feet tall and no more accountable than a newborn child. It knew what it knew and would know what it was allowed to be known, its field of vision in knowledge sequestered by complex files and packs of data that couldn't be seen or heard but, effected it so.

Its eyes were not eyes, they were cameras. It could see but, it could not _see_. It could, relay, it could tell, it could recant but, it could not know. It would process an image and make a judgment based on it but, it would never _know_ what it was seeing, it would never emote to it. The image would never be more than something its photosenors detected.

In fact the real pair of eyes behind its photosenors was a familiar one. Kazi watched the live image screen with much excitement, though he was the newest edition to this entire adventure he was the only one watching the progress as it happened. Heihachi had secluded himself to prepare for the final round of the tournament and Abel was away on some business he refused to tell anyone, though to miss the crowning moment for his creation it must have been intensely important.

Kazi watched from a close circuit television. Today were the second round match-ups and he had scheduled the Prototype JACK, to combat the JACK being entered. He was so excited he hadn't considered how it disappointing it would be if this other JACK wasn't the robotic creation stolen from the Zaibatsu. Either way he watched, this was the future of the Zaibatsu, if the Prototype JACK was successful, they would be mass produced and then sold to the highest bidder, hopefully obtaining a government contract. From there who knew what would happen? This was a great time for the Zaibatsu, everything they had worked so hard for in the last decade was coming to a head in the next few days. Enemies would be exposed and successes would be hailed.

Kazi could emote, feel, understand, enjoy and _know_ these things, something the Prototype JACK couldn't possibly do. Even through the small television Kazi had more of a grip on the world the Prototype JACK was seeing than it did. Even as a third party ghostly figure who was there but, not there Kazi was more alive than the dead-live thing that stomped the Earth but, did not know what stomping or what Earth was.

Under the pounding heat (which it could not feel) vibration rattled the Earth under it. Vibrations that were footsteps but, it only knew them as seismic shifts, abnormal and growing closer. It positioned its body in the direction the vibrations were coming from. From the safety of a small office Kazi leaned closer to the television to see.

Within moments it appeared. Kazi leaned back in his chair taken aback by the sight, the Prototype JACK moved none. It stood nearly at an identical height as the Prototype JACK but, different in almost every other way. It had skin, synthetic skin but, skin nonetheless. Its metallic body was hidden under it. It stood like a man, even with the appearance of muscles and hair (in a Mohawk) upon its head. It wore clothes like man and stared with an emotionless gaze unlike a man.

The two dead-live things stared at one another, almost in an understanding that they were the same but, radically different. Kazi sat silent watching the other JACK thinking in his mind how important this was.

And then in a quick jerk, the two beast slammed into one another, ruthlessly pounding on the other hell bent on destruction. The P.O.V. image was horrifying as the other JACK, with lifeless eyes, pounded away but, the Prototype JACK remained upright and battled back. Silver arms swinging and delivering crushing blows

The battle was terrible but, the fear in Kazi's heart faded and a joy slowly bubbled up into a smile. He suddenly knew that it didn't matter, victory or defeat.

The world had been changed today.

_Elsewhere_

Another set of eyes watched, it watched the Prototype JACK with critical eyes. Eyes that did know, that did emote. It didn't smile but, the same comforting thought crossed his mind as recorded the footage in silence. The world _had_ changed today, and he was going to take it for himself.


	34. NonViolence

**Non-Violence**

Quietly he sat at the small outdoor café, dress fashionably and wearing new sunglasses he had acquired from a high end store in a different part of town. People watched him, he looked like a movie star, he felt like a movie star.

In only a few years he had learned and all but mastered the martial arts. He was a great fighter and Lee Chaolan's first two rounds in the king of iron fist tournament had gone rather well. He was now waiting at this café across the street from the place designated as the meeting place for his third round fight. He checked his watch and sighed, frustration ringing clearly in the sigh. His opponent was late.

Lee thought to himself; 'how could someone not take this tournament seriously? This was the biggest fighting exhibition probably since the coliseums in Rome, the chance for extreme esteem and glory was at hand and this guy couldn't bother to be on time.' he flipped his hair and continued to think; 'the chance to fight Heihachi Mishima was at hand, forget the Zaibatsu and the money but, the sheer chance to face one of the greatest fighters in the world in combat was a prize in itself and this guy,' he had to remember the name. 'this guy Jack couldn't even show up on time!'.

He looked at his watch again and composed himself to be more patient. People walked by and watched him and he watched the space waiting for someone to stop inquisitively but, it never came. The thrill of the battle never besieged his body that day, Jack never appeared and Lee sat at the café until the sun melted into the horizon and the stars twinkled in the sky.

Automatically he moved on to the next round, all the while he wondered what had happened to Jack?


	35. Hotel Issues

**Hotel Issues**

_Tick, tick, tick, tick._

Nina Williams watched the clock, the seconds breezed by the minute hand rested neatly at thirty-five the hour hand announced Three. Three forty-five a.m. She couldn't sleep, she had nights like these. Sitting in the lavish penthouse looking at the neon lights of the city blinking, Nina sighed. The dream she just had would wrestle in her brain for the rest of the day.

The same dream for years.

The blue sky above them, the cool breeze from the ocean filling her nose and caressing her skin, seagulls cawed over head. In the distance some sail boats dotted the horizon. In front of her he stood there. Blonde short hair, a weathered but handsome face, the slightest scar on his left cheek, at his collar a perfectly dressed suit and black tie. He stood six feet and four inches, a serious face was usually plastered there but, today he smiled. A smile wouldn't expect from such a serious and dangerous man, wide and white exuding happiness. His smile held her there, the world fell apart everywhere else all that was left was his face and that smile, that beautiful smile.

"You ok, sweetie?" he asked; she felt her heart skip a beat, what was she going to say, how was she going to say it? She tried to talk but, the words got caught in her throat. Her mind raced, so angry, 'move!' she screamed in her mind. The words slowly rolled from her mouth, the hung in the air and danced around, she watched them and demanded them to his ears.

"Of course!" she blurted out, God it was good to see him again. This was all the difference in the world, all the death and pain and killing melted away. All the blood on her hands washed away with that smile and diffused into nothing in the water. He chuckled at her and gestured for her to come closer.

Her body moved slowly as if weighted down but, by God it moved and she would continue forward even if it took forever. He looked away for a moment at the water. Even the back of his head and neck were beautiful, how she missed it, how she just wanted to hold it and press her cheek against it, smell his cologne and even more enjoyable the scent of his skin. She trudge slowly closer, inch by inch. Gravity pushed her down and weights pulled her down but, she kept trying, God she kept trying and he turned back to her but, his face changed, surprise was on his face, he looked passed her. What was it? She turned slowly, to see what was behind her as her head turned she heard him say:

"Anna…"

_Tick, tick, tick, tick._

The clock ticked, she stood awake looking at it, the neon lights glowed in the dark. Her heart began to slow to normal again. Richard, the name played in her mind over and over again. It had been too long now. Her father was dead and yet she still wasn't over it. She looked around the penthouse suite, it was lavish. Very few walls, the main hall, living room and kitchen were all out in the open. The main hall way took a step down to lead to the kitchen, adjacent was a door that lead to the bathroom. On the other side a door lead to a main living area. They accommodated her well because her reservation for the other room was accidentally given away.

She felt so alone she sighed. If only she could go back to sleep and relive that moment with he father for longer, on the stand next the couch was a glass of water and two sleeping pills. She could do it, it would put her to sleep but, she hated taking sleeping pills. She didn't even feel awake now, just not in the same dream.

It wasn't cold but, she rubbed her hands on either arm, she stood only in her underwear, her hair fell about her face. Things were different these days; her life wasn't nearly the same. She thought about the dream, always the same beginning always the same end, he'd look pass her and say-

Something fell over in the darkness, her body stood rigid and looked in the direction. Nothing there. The hair on her neck stood up, she glared in the darkness. Calmly she walked over to the area and picked up the bottled water that had fell over and put it back on the table. She rolled her neck slowly and remained cautious. On the other side of the room the refrigerator was cracked open.

"Hm," she moaned to herself and went to the kitchen and closed the door, when she turned back to the main hall, four men in black and black ski-mask stood there. One held her knife in his hand, she frowned, not totally surprised.

"That's my knife" She called, the men began to inch closer quietly, she frowned, and looked over he shoulder, there was a large steak knife in the sink. She pulled it out and held it underhandedly and watched the man come closer. "Fine then."

The four men stalked her, inching closer like lions hunting their next kill. Nina backed up, making sure to keep them in her sight, it wasn't the first time she had been ambushed and probably wouldn't be the last. She suspected something when she got upgraded to this suite but, the question was who sent them? She had plenty of enemies, throughout the years there were more than enough bad blood between her and old clients and people related to marks. There was always the chance they'd find her and retaliate but, she was careful and even more so she was dangerous. Most people were warded off by her ruthlessness.

A billboard adjacent of the building warmly flashed the name of some product, it bathed her in light then faded, bathed, then faded. As the men came closer they entered her bath too, she watched alert, eyes calm from one to the other, to the other, to the other. Silently waiting for them to strike, she gripped the knife unwaveringly and breathed slowly.

The first man leapt forward and Nina quickly readjusted, she duck under his arm as he came around for a bunch and stabbed the knife into his back. He yelped and stumbled forward into the large window, she retracted the knife only a little blood dripped off the knife, the knife was too dull, it would cause pain but, unless she hit some vital parts nothing would happen. A second man punched forward and she sidestepped sending his fist in air, effortlessly she caught his muscular arm between her arm and force is forward cracking it loudly and his scream gurgled up after. Swiftly she added a palm up into his nose smashing his face back causing him to stumble back. The third man was hit by the falling second and the fourth tackled Nina onto the floor. His weight was greater than his but, she used the momentum of their fall to send him over her head, lying on his back heads touching lightly.

She reached and encircled his arm complicatedly, she pulled trying to break it but, another masked man was tearing towards her, she swept him off his feet with a accurate kick but, lost the first man's arm. Rapidly he was on his feet and her as well, for a few seconds he boxed at her but, she evaded, her skin was scratched but, she ignored it.

She smiled.

There was still a pleasure in this kind of thing, in breaking a man down into a pile of broken bones and wills. Between the slits that allowed them to see she could see fear, not the natural fear one has in battle, the one that propels you forward and demands success but, the one that breaks you into a thousand pieces before you hit the ground. The kind of fear that grips your heart and makes it burn. It was a fun game but, she was tired of it, she had a job to do in the morning, this would be the end for these men.

She took a step back up one step up into the main area. The four men gathered again cut, bruising, broken. They limped towards her like wounded animals who couldn't get enough of the slaughter, their weakness aroused her, last round.

Two of them jumped forward at the same time, she was caught between them as they rained punches sloppily towards her, some landed but, she could feel no pain in this state. Thinking with a superior and sound mind, she elbowed one in the stomach and took his head under her arm and fall to the ground as her foot came slamming up into the others groin.

The man under her arm was defeated, the sheer blow of his face hitting the floor with the force of falling and Nina's weight his face was shattered completely. He was knocked out before the pain registered, the second man, still reeling from his compacted groin, found himself with Nina's heel in his face. She was up in a flash and sustained a forceful punch in the face from one of the remaining two.

She stumbled back, right into the arms another man, she wriggled trying to free herself but, his grip was too strong. The ski masked puncher came out of the darkness, this time with a pipe, it looked harshly metal, rusted and deadly. She frowned to herself, pain was part of the game, she just had to accept it sometimes. He swung strongly with all his being and it landed perfectly onto her left leg. She screamed harshly as the pain detonated in her leg and then radiated into the rest of her body. He reared back with the pipe again, determined to knock her leg off its socket, Nina pushed with all her might back, pushing the man holding her into the wall. The pipe swung but, missed by inches, she leapt off the ground and wrapped her legs around his neck. She tightened her grip, the pain in her leg searing, it was surely broken but, she pushed hard against his neck, he flailed the pipe but, she twisted her leg roughly, feeling pain so strongly but, also taking the utmost pleasure in feeling his neck snap in two.

Before he hit the ground she was dislodged from her captors arms, she delivered three sharp blows and then forced his face into the wall with such force that it dented. She released him and he stood briefly like a puppet just released from its strings, before falling to the floor.

One more.

She turned and he was coming at her, she saw the knife on the floor between them, ignoring her leg she dived forward head first and grabbed it, flipping onto her feet and slashing his thigh. The momentum from his run and the sudden stop from the pain pushed him onto the hard wood floor., he moaned as he writhed. Nina cracked her neck and walked over to him, she looked into his eyes as the fear drowned his thoughts, strangling him.

She straddled him momentarily then plunged the knife into his neck. The blood spurted briefly as he gargled in pain, slapping her about the face and hair. She frowned, she never got used to that sensation. She stood, still half naked, cut and broken, she flipped her hair as she surveyed the carnage, satisfied. She threw the knife onto the floor, her prints were everywhere, there was no way of just walking out tomorrow morning.

She grabbed her own leg and snapped it back into position, she gritted her teeth has the pain rushed to her head but, vanished.

She sighed, thinking about her dream again, she was so far from that place. The blue skies, the blue sea and his face replaced with a million cried for help and bloody bodies strewn across perfectly buffed floors.


	36. We Are The Thieves!

'**We Are The Thieves!'**

Sitting in the middle of the Dim-Sum restaurant Yoshimitsu and Kunimitsu ate quietly. Though Yoshimitsu's elaborate dressings spoke loud enough for the two of them. Patrons watched him as he ate with baffled eyes and open mouths, the food lay quietly under them, occasionally missing their marks. Who were these people? Why were they dressed this way?

Yoshimitsu wasn't bothered by the people staring, in fact he didn't seem to even notice that they noticed him. Kunimitsu on the other hand did notice and tried desperately to avoid looking any of them in the eyes.

Today were the round three match-ups and by luck the two Manji found themselves in very close proximity to each other for it, so they went to lunch together. Yoshimitsu was in his usual great spirits and Kunimitsu not as enthusiastic but, still in a good mood. The closer they got to the million dollar prize the harder it was to conceal their joy. Yet still it was easier for Kunimitsu to remained composed than for Yoshimitsu.

He ate happily with a smile about his face, humming some song she had not heard before but, he kept humming the same part. It was stuck in her mind and she found herself humming it quietly to herself.

"I wonder how Feng is doing," Yoshimitsu spoke as he lifted his tea cup to his mouth with both hands.

"I'm sure he's fine," Kunimitsu answered quietly. "He's more than qualified to watch over the clan, and Tetsujin" Kunimitsu concluded.

"Imagine how pleased they will be when we pass on this money," He smiled happily and ate some more, she nodded.

"Don't get too excited," she warned. "It's only the third round."

"I know, I know," he waved off her negativity. "but, we have virtue on our sides, the amount of good this will bring to the people of Tetsujin most outweigh any of the selfish wants and greedy needs of the other participants" He rationalized, she shook her head.

"What makes you so sure, someone else is not in this tournament fighting for virtue?" She asked.

"Nothing but," he raised his finger and moved it from side to side. "We have always been virtuous and shall continue to be that way. Our blessing is secure." She shrugged her shoulders in half agreement but, mostly not wanting to continue the conversation. They ate in silence for a long time again.

"Did you know Ganryu is also a patron of this tournament?" Yoshimitsu asked; the glee in his voice was transparent.

"Ganryu, Ganryu," she repeated, pretending not to know who it was. "That's that Sumo-wrestler right?" She looked up from her food at Yoshimitsu who was giving her an incredulous stare.

"Yes," he answered surly; she smiled and he released the seriousness from his face and voice. "After this round I'm going to see him action. I may procure an autograph!" He bounced his head from side to side.

"Wasn't he the one who cheated?" Kunimitsu asked; seriousness returned to his face.

"Despicable lies"

"Why would they lie?" Kunimitsu pressed. "He lost." Yoshimitsu brought his hand about the tap with a loud rap.

"Because they are seduced with doing things the wanton way." He sneered; she shrugged again.

"Seems like a very silly thing to lie about." Kunimitsu provoked through the sipping of tea with countenance.

"Evil does not need sense to do things," Yoshimitsu explained. "They just do it" Kunimitsu shook her head.

"But why-"

"No, no, no!" Yoshimitsu interjected. "There is no why, your inquiries are exasperating me!" He went on to say something else but, just as his mouth opened the sound of a gun going off stopped him. The other patrons screamed, some stood in shock, others threw themselves down to the ground in fear, some ran to the door to escape the bullets, some ran into the crowd to gain anonymity.

Yoshimitsu and Kunimitsu did not move, in fact Kunimitsu continued sipping her tea, letting out a sigh between cooling blows.

"No one move this is a stuck up!" A voice erupted in the silence, from the stairs a group of young men ran down with semi-automatic weapons and black ski mask on. Yoshimitsu, turned away from the men, picked up his fork and ate another chew of food.

"This is the last time I let you pick a place to eat." He muttered to her.

"Should we just end this?" Kunimitsu asked; Yoshimitsu shook his head.

"Let them have their fun first." She shrugged.

The young men went through the patrons one by one, taking wallets, watches, rings, necklaces, cellular phones, beepers, earrings, checks and tips. The whole time the two Manji ate in silence, enjoying their food until the boys came up to them.

"Give us the money!" one yelled at Yoshimitsu, he looked up at the boy and the nature of his mask surprised him, he hesitated a bit and another boy came over.

"What the hell is this, Halloween?" The second boy asked; Yoshimitsu yawned. "Give us everything." He pointed the gun to Yoshimitsu's head. Slowly, not out of caution but in exaggerated aloofness. Yoshimitsu took all the money he had and placed it into the bag.

"The rest!" The boy demanded.

"Where would I stash anymore?" The Manji leader asked; the boy sneered but, moved onto Kunimitsu. She already had her money out and placed it into the bag, continuing to drink her tea. The boy watched her and her aloofness annoyed irked him.

"That," he nodded his head to her belt, she looked down at her knife sheathed, then at the boy, then at Yoshimitsu who watched her face with an unmoving gaze. The boy, fed up with Kunimitsu's lack of movement, snatched the sheathed knife and put it in the bag. As he did She moved swiftly but, Yoshimitsu grunted loudly. She stopped, and sighed.

The boys continued through the people until they were done and went back to the staircase.

"You've all been very cooperative," the lead boy called out. "And when someone ask you who you robbed by today, remember to tell them we are the thieves!" he threw something into the crowd and they exploding in the air and on the ground. People screamed again, smoke came from the small bombs and the floor was filled with white clouds before long. Yoshimitsu's gaze had not moved from Kunimitsu's.

"That was very cliché" Kunimitsu spoke.

"They're young." The Manji leader shrugged.

"Can we go now?" She asked, stretching her neck, he frowned.

"At least let them get up the stairs first." He suggested, she stood and wiped her face with a napkin and put on her mask, which laid under the table.

"That should be good enough." She began to move, Yoshimitsu also stood up but, took his time.

"Go easy on them, Kunimitsu," He started. "They're young!" he called out to her as she ran through the white fog and up the stairs.

The wind whipped on the roof, a storm wasn't too far off, the golden sun was being hugged by a couple of dark menacing clouds that frowned down upon the city. The boys had taken off their mask on the roof and ran quickly across the roof, jumping to an adjacent building and continued on.

Kunimitsu arrived on the roof just as the last of the boys was making their way onto the nearest roof. He was clumsy and stupid. The others had dashed across the roofs quickly but, this one let fear grab him and he took his time crawling over one roof the other.

"Always a straggler." Kunimitsu muttered to herself and went over to him.

The boy was on all fours, trying to ease his way to the other roof, she shook her head and leaned over taking his bag of stolen goods and throwing it back behind her. When we was almost over he reached back for the bag but, connected with her hand. He looked back and saw her just as she gave him a soft kick on his behind sending him off the roof.

She clutched his hand and the boy swung in wind seven floors above the ground. He screamed loudly and began to cry.

"Where are your friends going?" She asked; the boy screamed and moaned loudly for help. She pulled him up slightly. "Where?" he sniffled.

"We got in through the construction site, we just climbed our way to the roof!" he admitted; she nodded and pulled him up more.

"Grab on to the ledge" she ordered, the boy grabbed on and released her hanging off the building side. She stood up and continued across leaving him there, crying and screaming.

Ahead the others boys ran unawares of the events that just transpired, she ran quickly to catch up to the next closest adolescent carrying a slightly smaller bag. Her legs moved with resolve not feeling themselves running, just protocol one over the other with violent force.

Her mind remained focus, she hated kids like these they needed discipline and most of all they stole _her_ knife. Who needed a knife? it was an knife too, not one of any particular design but, it was hers and he stole it and so she would steal it back. Not before long she could see the building under construction, one boy, the one she wanted, through himself into the scaffolding like Jungle gyms in a playground and began cascading down to the ground level. Two more boys did the same but, the third and closest boy wouldn't get the chance. Kunimitsu pounced forward and landed squarely on the boys back. She held his head down with one foot and stood on his back with the other, she knelt down and ripped the bag from his hands and threw it into a nearby window knowing he wouldn't risk jumping to his death to obtain it, and then she continued on jumping into the skeleton building in pursuit of the other teens.

Just coming to the roof of the restaurant Yoshimitsu walked slowly with exaggerated disinterest. He crossed the roof to the space where the first boy was hanging precariously. For a moment he watched the boy flail his legs in fear, cars honked under him boasting their knowledge of his fears. Yoshimitsu knelt down in front of the boys face and grasping hands.

"Does this fastidious existence gratify you?" Yoshimitsu asked; the boy flailed extra violently when he saw Yoshimitsu wasn't immediately rescuing him.

"What?" the boy yelled in total fear, Yoshimitsu chuckled a bit to himself.

"Is _this_ the life you want?" Yoshimitsu asked again more firmly, this time the boy answered very surely.

"No!" he screamed with terror, at that Yoshimitsu grabbed his hand and pulled the boy onto the roof, for a long moment the by flopped like a fish on the solid roof either so glad to be there or testing the soundness in some unorthodox way. Yoshimitsu watched as he did this and eventually stopped to lie still on his back facing the sky.

"Which way did she go?" Yoshimitsu asked; the boy simply pointed a finger in the direction Kunimitsu went and then passed out. Yoshimitsu then turned his direction that way and slowly continued on.

Swinging with her arms and momentum from the fall, her feet smashed into the third boy and his grip was snatched from the metal bar. Gravity pulled the boy down and his shoulders hit another iron bar with such force that he flipped the opposite way before landing on a small platform. With the precision of an expert marksman Kunimitsu landed on the same platform and grabbed the back he had stashed his stolen goods in and tossed it at the next boy. The bag careened into the boy and he was thrown back and his head smacked against iron. He hit the ground hard and Kunimitsu landed next to him.

She turned him over to check to see if he was alright, a slight dazed look in his eyes but, otherwise fine. She pushed him away and just as she stood straight the boy who had stolen her knife landed on the ground on both feet like an expert gymnast.

To his surprise Kunimitsu stood there waiting for him, he turned to run the other way but, just as he did Yoshimitsu materialized in front of him both arms crossed. He dropped the bag unsure of what his fate was going to be, he began to panic and blurted to the Manji leader:

"Who are you?" but before he could answer Kunimitsu grabbed him by the shoulder and turned him around, she reared her arm back for a blow and said.

"_We_ are the thieves!"


	37. Turning Points

**Turning Points**

"One hundred ninety-six, one hundred ninety-seven, one hundred ninety-eight, one hundred ninety-nine, two hundred!" He groaned successfully as he stood back on his feet. Two hundred push-ups before a match were, at the very least, customary.

King was happy.

He was one of the finalist in the Tekken tournament. He was confident that he'd go far but, still to be a finalist was a thing to celebrate. A wrestler from Mexico, here in the finals for the most intense fighting tournament, maybe, ever, he felt an extreme notion of pride not because he was doing so well but, why he was doing so well. The thought of building that orphanage gave him all the push he need to win every round so far, how great it was going to be to use that million dollars to build a home for those kids and see them happy and thriving and educated. God was with him on this journey he could feel it, he knew others probably had many good reason to have entered but, his was selfless! It would be an amazing feeling to return to Mexico victorious, even Heihachi Mishima would be impressed at King's skill and virtuous resolve.

He stretched some, and took off his shirt as to be free. It was hot, the sun was high in the sky and beating down on him. He touched his toes and then bent backwards catching his fall with his hands and standing like a bridge. He remained there with his eyes closed, the sun on his chest and abdomen, he felt good, for the first time in a very long time he felt very good as if all was well in this place. Even the pull on his muscles from the convoluted position didn't bother him much and he only came out of it when he heard someone approaching.

She did all she could not to hobble, her leg was still in pain from three nights before but, it was still functioning. After escaping the hotel she made an impromptu brace and braced her leg. It felt better but, she had to take it off before her match and it was beginning to feel sore again. Nina was doing well, she was closer to the end of the tournament and to killing Heihachi Mishima and winning the million dollar prize, plus the sum her employer was going to pay her. This was the absolute worse time to have her leg be in this much pain but, she was discipline she had been in worse pain before and gotten through some sticky situations.

She approached her opponent slowly as he stretched in the sun, his brown body was already sweating in the sun, he chest was perfect to say the least and it perfectly slimed into a slim but, muscular abdomen which boasted a perfect cut on each side, inducing a V into his jockey shorts.

She sneered in disgust.

As she came closer he heard her and came out of his stretching by, lazily hitting the ground and getting up again. He stood tall and his body was more impressive standing upright, he would have a lot of strength in his body, she knew instantly she would have to be more careful with this opponent than any of the others she had fought so far in the tournament.

He turned and revealed he was wearing a mask, a jaguar mask, he came over to her swinging his arms to stretch them and then held his hand out to shake hers.

"Pleasure to meet you I'm…" he pointed to the name on his jockey shorts "King." Nina looked at the mask and a wave of disbelief and disgust came over her. She lifted her hand to her head and said aloud.

"Why do I even bother?" King frowned in his mask, this woman was rude but, it didn't matter, she was small and the match was already uneven. He was going to win this match and be on his way. He lowered his hand and bowed briefly.

"Lets begin then." He stood in his fighting stance and Nina slowly entered hers watching his body for weaknesses. He bounced on his tip toes, this was good for maneuvering but, bad for balance, it would help if she knew what kind of fighting style he was using but, she would find out soon enough.

Nina took a deep breath and let the pain in her leg fade out of her mind, it was all a mind game. All she had to do was keep her leg out of this fight as much as possible, just break the enemy and move on.

He watched her with unwavering eyes, wondering what her first was going to be, she watched him the same way. This was truly the most nerve-wracking part of the battle, who would move first, who would do what? It could all be over within seconds if someone did the right or wrong move it would end the battle.

She darted forward, he palms shooting out ahead of her preparing to smack into King with deadly force but, he saw her brace briefly before attacking, her leg tensed, he made a mental note of it. He caught her arm and twisted it behind her back and wrapped his arm around her neck holding her rigidly against his body.

'A wrestler' she thought to herself recognizing his reversal immediately. Part of her was excited by this revelation while the other part was alarmed. With her free hand she grabbed his wrist and put a pressure on it he had never felt before. It made him instantly snap his arm from clutching her and she twisted around his back, forcing him to free her. She twisted it hard in a different direction but, with fluidity she hadn't seen before his body followed the twist and he pushed her off of him.

They stood away from each other again both surprised by the others ability. Nina surprised at how easy he had escaped her grasp and King surprised at the sheer force Nina presented. Both took a second to reevaluate their attack plan on the other and then found resolve in confidence.

Again she darted forward, same as before and this time he expected it and sent his palm flying forward to meet her. Nina's cleverness however, persevered, a swift swivel and his arm extended missing her, and she grabbed it and pulled it towards her body. With his balanced compromised she sent her far hand into his face, his head snapped back and she pulled his arm with all her might trying to snap it.

Her efforts failed, as King jumped in the direction she pulled springing loose from her grip. Her whole body made the revolution and when she was back face him he jumped like the animal his mask favored and tackled her to the ground.

He straddled her for one moment too long allowing her to gain her bearings, she took her elbow and buried it right under his rib cage, this forced the air out of his lungs and he gasped desperately his eyes widened and he teetered off of her. The blow was too damaging to recover from this way. He pulled off of her and sprang to his feet, holding the area she struck.

Such a powerful hit from her, he watched her as she took her time getting up, sure he wouldn't strike. Who was she? He had been hit before but, someone so small packing such a punch. He knew he would bruise; he sneered briefly in silence at the pain and took a deep breath. It hurt; he'd have to figure something out.

She stood, taking her time not looking at him, she knew the blow was strong, extra rough to deter him, put some fear into him. What he didn't know was that tackle upset her leg a bit, she stood trying to ignore the pain but, even more so trying to keep the pain from showing. If she showed a weakness he'd exploit it.

She stood straight and a sharp pain tore through her leg, she ignored it and faced King. He took another deep breath and smirked within his mask.

He shot forward and she came with the same force, she put her elbow out again but he tossed it away and placed her chest on his shoulder and lifted her clean of the ground, the sudden loss of gravity took Nina by surprise but, even as he pushed her up she was considering what to do. He tried to hold her upside down but, as her legs came to face straight to the sky, she used all of her power to send them across the plane of gravity. King tried to force her back the other way but, she tilted and fell on her feet behind him; her hands still grasping his shoulders, she used the momentum from being tossed to pull him over her and toss him forward.

Total shock filled King's mind as he was tossed into the air, the sheer power of this woman throwing him sent his mind flying further than his body and ten he hit the ground. Roughly without any bearings he hit, his body rolled a little and he tried to quickly stand but, only managed to get onto one knee when he noticed Nina right in front of him. She threw her leg forward to his chest, in reflex he threw his hands up to his chest, his left one behind the right and absorbed the blow. He gripped her ankle and threw his left hand up to bring it down on her leg but, again found his blow interrupted. She grabbed his hand with a grip he hadn't experienced in most men. She forcibly pushed it back, putting an amazing strain on his wrist and he only avoided having his wrist snapped like a twig by, letting his arm go with her pushing. For a split second her balance was compromised and it was all he needed, he hopped upon both feet crouching and, with her hand still locked in his, threw his body into the air and sent his legs hurling towards her stomach. She snatched her hand quickly out of his grip and pushed her palms as hard as she could into his incoming feet, the two blows hit one another and sent King falling back landing on his back, Nina stumbled back but, remained on her feet.

King threw himself onto his legs just in time to catch her incoming hand and with an almost angry strength he pulled her arm down forcing her to her knees. He attempted to grab her by her side but, she violently slammed her shoulder into his side, once, twice, three times, King fell back and forced himself steady. She came at him again tossing her hand into his gut, he hunched over but, pushed her back she stumbled, with all the force he could muster up he slammed his palm towards her, confident it would send her reeling but, it failed again her speed and precision got the best of King. She grabbed his hand by the wrist and pulled it down then snapped it back up. His body, like a toy, flipped in the air but, with such skill he threw his body ahead and landed squarely on his feet.

The rebound shocked Nina and in her moment of shock, he grabbed her by the side and threw his body back, bringing her back with him. They hit the ground and Nina didn't waste a second, she grabbed his free arm and twisted it in a terrible way. She heard the wrestler groan terribly in pain and she didn't notice what he was doing. She pulled harshly convinced she had finally found her break in the battle when it happened.

The pain blasted through her leg, it was if someone was hacking away at it with an axe, she looked down and saw King had gotten a grip on it, he was twisting it. 'No!' she thought to herself, he could have grabbed her other leg, her foot, anything but, not this. The pain was searing, it caused her to curse violently and viciously in reflex.

She would _not_ lose this fight, she twisted his wrist strangely and applied a pressure she had never done before, King grit his teeth and moaned loudly through them. It would have to be a battle of endurance King decided. He pulled on her leg with all his might, determined to get her to submit, unaware of her previous condition and she pulled trying to cause more pain that she was in. She felt the bones in his wrist resisting, if only she could make it snap, his lack of resistance against her made it hard to use his own power against him but, she continued to twist. Her eyes squinting together powerfully, tears rolling down her eyes from the sheer pain, her eyes opened looking at the sky, it seemed to be screaming at her and coming down quickly towards her.

King Tried to ignore his pain but, he felt as if he had to let go a broken hand would be useless to him, if he lost this tournament he'd have to go back to fighting right after. Was this worth it? Could he outlast this woman, maybe at the beginning of this fight he would have thought he could have but, after seeing her power and skill he wasn't sure. He had never seen this much hardness in a person before, even in some of his most difficult opponents there wasn't this willingness to have themselves subjected to pain just to persevere in the end.

Nina continued even as the colors in the sky distorted, the sky was white and the clouds blue, the sun black, a sprawling ball of black fair licking its fiery tongue at her. The heat on her leg searing into her, so hot, so incredibly hot it was upon her cheek, melting the flesh, cooking the muscle, charring the bone. She refused it, the pain was nothing to her, nothing! A trifle that could be ignored, or could it? It continued, worsening with every passing moment, her stomach twisted in pain and the sky began to spin. Around and around and around, swirling and twirling, sinking and rising every fiber in her being screamed out into the open air. They screamed the same things, to win and to be released and she did the only thing she could do.

She pulled on his wrist harder.

King hollered in pain just as she was, the two of them on the ground screaming in torture but, both unwilling to let the other go. Nina remained focus, she had a job to do. She accepted this job to kill Heihachi Mishima and she would not fail it. The pay was expansive and even more so her reputation was on the line, if she failed she would be a loose end and they would come after her until either she or they were victorious. She didn't need the problem of dealing with that, she _had_ had to win this battle to ensure a safe future for herself. She had to win this fight to kill Heihachi Mishima.

King was perplexed, his wrist was in pain and it was getting to be so powerful that his shoulder was beginning to pain him as well. He was at his breaking point literally, his wrist couldn't handle much more and his mind, his mind was twirling into a tailspin of incoherent thoughts.

He thought about everything, the church, the father, the sisters, the kids. Oh God, the kids, he remembered the kids, yes that's why he was here to win the tournament and build an orphanage and to give those kids a better life and if he had to go through some pain to achieve that, then he would. God was on his side.

"Enough!" A voice called out; there was a pause and they both loosened their grips. King wasn't sure if he had said it or not, his mind was just beginning to come back. Had he surrendered? "Enough…"

Nina's voice trailed off at the end and King let go of her leg, she released his arm. For a moment they just lie there seemingly closer to death and eventually Nina went to stand and King followed. He stood up straight rubbing his arm still reeling from the pain but, she didn't touch her leg. Her face was flushed, he was afraid that she may attack again but, she stood there with this expression of pure rage and hate on her face.

"I must say you're a very experienced fighter" King tried to diffuse the tension but, Nina said nothing, she just stared at him, her hair in front of her face slightly, watching him as if unsure whether she was going to pounce in a blind rage or run away.

In fact Nina was unsure of what to do, her leg was on fire and if she left she would be kicked out of the tournament and would have to figure out another way to find and kill Heihachi. She could jump forward and kill this man, this foolish wrestler with a jaguar mask but, what would that achieve? If she did they'd come after her, she doubted she'd be able to get o the final round and kill Heihachi before the authorities captured her.

Her leg burned with a pain but, not as powerfully as her mind, she could barely see straight, her sight was red with pure passion and she felt as if she could lose control any moment.

It did not occur that way however, she took a deep breath and sneered at King, she flipped her hair back and grunted. He backed up slightly bracing for attack but, she turned away from him without a word and walked off. He sighed in relief, he was still in the tournament, and he still had his chance at redemption, to save those kids. King fell down to his knees and prayed in the sun, the warmth of God upon his back.

Nina walked off; she walked and walked and walked the pain in her leg of no consequence. Her mind was furious but, her chances weren't ended, she knew what she had to do. It just meant being more proactive and unfortunately for someone else, more deadly. She walked back into the city, a slight limp in her body but, her resolve greater than ever, no one aware of the horrific violence smoldering in her heart.


	38. Cheating Hearts

**Cheating Hearts/Hero Today, Gone Tomorrow**

Yoshimitsu spied benignly and quietly from a tree.

The time had come fifth round battles in the King of Iron Fist tournament would determine finalist, people came from near and far to reach this point and could taste the glory. Today Michelle Chang was matched up with the opponent, Ganryu. She had reached King George Island early and had settled down with ease, Yoshimitsu arrived shortly after her and made his way to the meeting grounds. The island had a lush forest on its southern end and Yoshimitsu was happy to explore it without interruption. Kunimitsu and he had already completed their fifth round rounds and were expected to wait until all the results were determined. So he figured he'd come see his favorite sumo wrestler in action while Kunimitsu gave the news to the boys back home. The sun was high in the sky and Michelle waited cross legged on the dirt for her opponent, Yoshimitsu sat the same way in the tree but, his patience was far less developed than hers.

Where was Ganryu? He kept asking himself, he had come all this way to see the man he had watched on television for years and yet he was not here. He sat absolutely still but, his mind and soul were jumping around like children. Ganryu was the best sumo wrestler he had ever seen and today he was going to get the chance to see him in action!

He felt bad for the young girl dressed in strange feathers and leather, she looked like a good girl but, he knew Ganryu's might would probably make quick work of her. Not quick work, after-all she was _here_ in the fifth round of this tournament she must have some merits and she deserved for them to be acknowledged. Yoshimitsu nodded his head satisfied, she did deserve credit and he was going to give it to her.

Ganryu would defeat her despite her valiant effort to be successful.

He smiled thinking of the masterful techniques he would reveal onto the girl, all the fancy and lithe moves he saw on television would look thousands of times more amazing live and in the forest too! Nature would meet martial art beauty, it was almost too much to ask for but, it would happen and he would be treated!

The young girl sighed and her sentiments echoed in Yoshmitsu's mind. Maybe Ganryu was stalled somewhere? Maybe the boat that lead to the island had engine troubles? Maybe it was sinking!

Yoshimitsu felt a sharp pang shoot through is heart and just as he was about to get up to investigate a rustling in the trees below revealed the familiar frame of a sumo wrestler.

Michelle stood to greet her opponent but, Yoshimitsu nearly jumped out the tree to rain pleasantries upon him. Michelle combed her hair with her hands and bowed graciously at the sumo wrestler and he did the same.

It was when he rose from the bow did he first notice Michelle's face, he seemed surprised in fact the sack he was carrying fall from his hands as he stared into her eyes. A wave of emotion came about him, he felt as if he was falling a hundred, a thousand, a million miles into her eyes. Swimming in some kind of amorous inebriation, he treaded and sank, drowning happily, blissfully and-

His sack the ground and whatever trance Ganryu was in, ended. He snapped back to reality and quickly readjusted himself to pick the bag off the ground. None of the contents spilled out of the bag but, he panicked as if they did, looking around for any of the things placed inside of it. He calmed slowly as he realized nothing had fallen, and returned back to the young girl, he bowed again which prompted an unsure bow from her.

"A pleasure to meet you, I am Ganryu!" He introduced himself, Yoshimitsu felt himself almost of the verge of squealing, Michelle nodded and smiled.

"I'm Michelle," she responded to him, Ganryu's eyes widened as large as his smile.

"That's a beautiful name," He cooed. "I apologize for being late but, I had met some, um, elderly, yes elderly women trying to disembark from the boat and I felt as if I should help them." Ganryu explained, Yoshimitsu had to refrain from slapping his hands together in happiness. 'What a virtuous gentleman!' Yoshimitsu thought to himself. Michelle was a little less convinced about Ganryu's story; there was something odd about this man, something that made her uncomfortable.

"It's alright" she answered tersely but, with kindness. He smiled, Yoshimitsu smiled at his smiling, Michelle smiled half heartedly unsure of why he was _still_ smiling. "Well…" she started unsure of what to say next, Ganryu came back to whatever senses he had nodded.

"This is a beautiful island isn't it?" Ganryu asked; Michelle half frowned and smiled.

"Yes, it's…" she searched for a word "Nice." He grinned happily and she rubbed her arm nervously, Yoshimitsu watched leaning out of the tree almost falling.

"Very nice…" He muttered. Michelle looked around in silence, birds cawed in the distance, the wind blew, leaves rustled.

Nothing happened.

"We should start" Michelle broke the silence, Ganryu nodded.

"Ah but, first," He reached into his bag and took out two cups and a bottle. "We must have a drink, it's a, er, tradition to take a sip of this drink before a match. It offers good luck and respect between match mates." he poured the drinks, Yoshimitsu was excited, he had never heard of this tradition, he was learning things from him, things so rich in tradition, Yoshimitsu was dumfounded. Michelle was less impressed but, decided to go along with the tradition and nodded, she took the cup from Ganryu and he said a few poetic, albeit dramatic, words about their upcoming battle and she drank.

Yoshimitsu cried on the inside, how he wanted to drink from that cup and engage in an exciting battle with his hero, the sip of the drink would be sweet but, not sweeter than the taste of battle on the air and even defeat for Yoshimitsu would be bittersweet as Ganryu was such an amazing warrior in the skill of sumo wrestling. His head swooned at the thought that he might be matched up with Ganryu later, how great that would be, Kunimitsu would see, all her teasing of this amazing fighter would be put to rest when he lay down skill after skill in a bout that would undoubtedly send her, head over heels in admiration and-

Michelle fell over.

It wasn't a violent fall, it was a soft slow fall, her body neatly hit the ground with a low impact sound as the dirt rose up from the fall. It was like falling into a pile of pillows, surrounded by dirt. It was a curious fall though, one moment she was totally fine and then she fell to the floor as if she had been knocked over by some specter. Yoshimitsu watched curiously at her fall but, what surprised him was Ganryu's reaction.

For a moment he just stood there watching her comatose body, he then took the cup from his mouth and feverishly wiped his mouth with the back of his hand as if afraid to get any of the drink on his tongue. He then threw the cup and drink back into the sack and walked over to Michelle's body slowly, unconcerned even.

He stood over her body for a long moment and then slapped her cheek lightly, the with a little more force and then with a good deal force. Michelle only moved along with his hand, almost dead. Ganryu's next action left Yoshimitsu wide eyed and mouth agape.

He smiled.

He then began rummaging through her clothes as if looking for something, he patted her down and went through ornaments on her body, plucking them off and then either throwing them away from him or back towards his bag. Finally he seemed to find exactly what he was looking for. The black tracking device that all participants wore, Ganryu took it from her and played with it for a moment and then threw it back to the bag too. He kept rummaging and eventually came to something he took a pause to look at. He held the pendant up in the sunlight and it reflected in the sun, the glare got in Yoshimitsu's eyes but, he didn't move he watched shocked at the scene.

Ganryu rubbed the pendant with Michelle's jacket and then threw it back into the dirt next to the sack. He then stood over her again and knelt very close to her face.

"So pretty" he stretched out the last word, and looked all around her face before leaning over and kissing her softly on her forehead. He then smirked like a child and giggled before getting up and putting he stolen goods in his bag and walking off.

Yoshimitsu sat there, in the tree without sound without motion. His mouth on the ground below, his heart shattered.

'This wasn't happening' Yoshimitsu thought to himself. 'This was some horrible nightmare he had thought of because of Kunimitsu relentless taunts about Ganryu, she had finally gotten to him and it was culminating into this nightmare of heart breaking proportions.' he surveyed the scene again to see how ridiculous it was. There was the young, native American, woman lying on the ground, comatose peaceful and quiet, in a bed of black, pure dirt and surrounded by sharp emerald blades of grass. In the near distance, now above the horizon was Ganryu, stout and slightly waddling, a bag thrown over his left shoulder and a quickened pace in his step. The sun high over him but, beginning to fall in the afternoon that was coming, around him a circulation of trees slowly engulfing him until eventually he would be out of sight.

And then there was Yoshimitsu sitting in this brown tree, on this branch with the slightest green foliage clinging on it like a clown to its desperate last humorous folly. A cloud passed over the sun for a moment and a bird landed on the branch along with Yoshimitsu. For the first time since the deceptive actions happened on the ground, he turned his face and looked at the bird. It was blue, a black streak across its back, until it reached its tail feather and then parted into two streaks going away from one another. It cocked its head at Yoshimitsu as if asking a silent question to the Manji leader and he knew what it was asking.

The Manji smiled and held out his hand warmly to the animal and after a slight moment of hesitation it hopped into his hand and happily snuggled against his palm.

"Yes, my little friend," Yoshimitsu spoke to the bird. "I will do the correct thing. Now, go!" and he threw his hand forward and the bird tweeted away happily into the nearby trees. Yoshimitsu watched for a moment after it was gone and then sighed.

"A fool and his money are soon parted" he spoke to himself and then jumped out the tree.

Ganryu was smiling to himself, he really hadn't expected this. He didn't even think it was possible, he enters the most advanced tournament in modern history and gets to the finals without having to lift one hand to fight! When he saw his first opponent he knew he was outmatched but, they all fell for simple tricks and no one had reported anything and he wasn't disqualified! He could smell the title of Yokozuna ahead of him, even if he didn't beat Heihachi Mishima coming in third or second would be an amazing amount of exposure for him. Fans would be reignited into thinking he was the best and support, admiration and most importantly _money_ would be pouring in from everywhere.

But what was most great was that girl he just met, his official report had her listed as Michelle Chang, she was beautiful, perhaps the most beautiful woman he had ever seen before in his life. His heart felt aflutter as he walked quickly back to the dock, when the tournament was over and he was famous again he would find her, call her up and ask her out for a date! She wouldn't deny him, he would be famous and on his way to being rich and she'd fall in love with him.

"Bwhahahaha!" Ganryu laughed out loud, he couldn't control it, it echoed around the trees and birds flew nervously away from it. He felt embarrassed as a child does when they knock over an expensive vase but, it fortunately, does not break, and he quietly laughed to himself again but, much more quietly.

He quickened his pace and tugged on his bag, There were some good things in here, he could sell them and make a good amount of money, he wouldn't have to wait for prizes and riches, he'd have some immediately and he could go shopping as soon as he wanted to.

As he came over the hill he could see the blue crisp blue water that surrounded St. George Island. In thirty minutes he'd be back on the mainland and onto the next round of the tournament one step closer to victory.

He tugged on the bag again and is came back over his shoulder, only a small segment however. About a fourth of the way it had been seared off. It must have ripped somewhere and he didn't feel it. It could never be too easy he complained, and he turned around to retrieve his bag.

When was fully turned he was confronted with the image of this man (?) in front of him. Ganryu blinked twice at this image, he felt his heart fall to the ground. Who was this? What did he want 'Oh God…!' he thought to himself. '..He's holding my bag and a sword!' and indeed he was, in his right hand was a sword that slightly hummed with color in the sunlight and in his left his torn bag, the contents barely staying inside. Ganryu gulped slowly, thinking about what this thing was going to do to him. For a moment neither of them said anything at all and fear and guilt gripped Ganryu's heart. This guy was probably a Zaibatsu guard, 'oh God,' he thought again. 'It's all over!'

"Ganryu," the strange man called; he felt his heart sink even further. The man took his sword and pointed it at Ganryu. "I am a-"

Ganryu couldn't take it anymore, he couldn't imagine what would happen to him now that he was caught and he did the only think he could think of.

He ran.

Like a bolt of lighting he tore off towards the water away from Yoshimitsu without a word. Yoshimitsu was astonished at the speed Ganryu had summoned up so quickly, within moments the Sumo was gone from sight, blazing in the opposite direction. "Fan of yours" Yoshimitsu completed his sentence slowly, not quite sure how to deal with this sudden turn of events. He frowned and then dropped the bag onto the dirt ground, a little dirt kicked up to his ankles and he began to go through the bag looking for Julia's things.

After locating the expensive and ancient looking pendant and placing it to the side to return back to the young native American girl he found something that seemed to be of importance. Schematics of a base apparently held by a company named Genetics Corporation, he read over them, they were detailed and apparently a large amount of gold and platinum was being held in this base. Yoshimitsu thought this over, a million dollars in the Tekken tournament was good but, gold was a bargaining tool, Tetsujin could deal with more advanced towns and cities and trade the gold for a greater amount of profit, not just monetary but, in services as well.

This presented a problem; he weighed the chances of continuing in this tournament and succeeding against his new opponents and Heihachi Mishima and how far the million dollars could go, versus a raid on this base and taking this gold. Even some of this gold would be worth a lot more than the chance at a million dollars. Kunimitsu and Feng could bring the raiding squad; they could leave this tournament and bring more immediate relief to Tetsujin.

He shook off the thought and decided it would be dealt with next time he spoke to Kunimitsu, in the meantime he had to return these things to this young girl. He smiled at her even though she couldn't see him. It was good to know everything would be alright with her, he placed the pendant on her chest and folded her hand crossed onto it. He looked at her and frowned, he had made her up to look dead, so he uncrossed her arms and put the pendant in her left hand and closed it. That looked a lot better; he smiled one more time and left her there with the schematics in hand.

Forty-five minutes later she arose, tired and slightly disoriented but, overall in good health, she felt the pendant in her hand and panicked. How did it get there? Did someone try to steal it! She looked around suspicious but, nothing happened. She stood up and put the pendant back on and into her bosom, she cried, she had lost the tournament. Her chance at revenge was gone. She wiped her tears with the back of her hand and gained some resolve. No she was going to kill Heihachi, she didn't have to be in the tournament to get to him.

Tournament or not she was going to kill Heihachi Mishima.


	39. Rivals

**Rivals**

King had to wrap his arm from his last battle with Nina but, within three days it was somewhat better. It was round seven, just two more rounds from being matched with Heihachi Mishima. He had come so unbelievably far and he just had a little to go. From here participants were not set up anymore, there were so few that general meeting areas were given. King didn't know who his round seven opponents was going to be but, after ten minutes of waiting he found out.

He sighed loudly when he saw him come into the area, he felt his heart burn at the sight of him. He somewhat assumed it would happen this way but, during all of the battles he had somewhat forgotten what was said the day he registered for the tournament. There was no ignoring it now though, everything was in place to be finished. Scores settled, hatchets buried, this would be the end of all of these things, the past could stop haunting him now.

Armor King walked into the meeting area in total silence but, his eyes never once left King's body. King was rigid and afraid; Armor King noticed. It had been years since they last battled and now he had the chance for redemption. His eye felt impressed on his face a reminder of the cruel actions King achieved years ago, he walked confidentially, the tournament had been easy for him. Each and every opponent fell like dominoes and now here he was facing the biggest of them all, the most important factor in his life. He smiled confidentially, holding his mask under his arm.

"King…" Armor King spoke in a boastful sneer. "It's a surprise to see someone as cowardly as you actually made it this far in this tournament" He stood a few feet away from the young man watching him with unforgiving eyes. The nerve of King not just forfeiting this battle. _He_ was wrong but, it would all be in his favor, Armor King had waited for the moment to arrive. Armor King hadn't gone after King before because he wished not to push something he felt in his heart would come. When the powers that be wanted him to face the treacherous youth they would send him a message and that they did. Out of all the wrestling tournaments that had been held and he participated in not one brought him face to face with King but, on a bleak afternoon he entered this Tekken tournament and it brought King right into the palm of his hand. Fate was on his side and King would see his day of reckoning come to life.

King moved uneasily at Armor King's words, part of him wanted to battle Armor King, because he knew if he won the fight Armor King would let their past go. He might have been bitter but, he wasn't without merit, a win on King's side would ensure Armor King wouldn't stalk him looking for revenge but, on the other hand he felt unworthy. What he had done those years back was wrong, he didn't _mean_ to hurt Armor King that way but, to boast about it and not extend his apologies was wrong, he was a different person them. A brat, a kid without any merits, that's why he almost died. Roaming through Mexico with a chip on his shoulder and a cocky attitude he got mixed up with the wrong guys. He followed them around for a couple of months and knew he was the most powerful of them and challenged the leader for control, he accepted and King won but, things didn't pan out as agreed. After he won they revolted against him, first quietly, offering non-support and then eventually in the middle of the night they attacked him. They fought violently for hours, spilling out of a bar into the streets and into the wilderness, they chased him miles and they fought horribly and King defeated them one by one but, at the end of it all he was broken and lost in the desert with only a bottle of alcohol he had taken from one of his ex-mates. He walked four days, unsure of where he was going, dying of heat in the day and freezing in the night, his body dehydrated and suffering from an inebriation that would not pass and then he found the church.

God, that was all so long ago though, he wasn't even close to that person anymore but, Armor King looked at him and all he saw was that same boy. If there was only some way to get through to him, perhaps there was some kind of understanding they could reach.

"Look I know you hate me but," King paused, surprised Armor King had actually let him talk this much. "I want to apologize, I've changed. What I did all those years back was wrong and I've found God. It still haunts me to this day." King finished. Armor King sneered into a laugh.

"God?" He repeated. "The priest who wrestles his opponents into submission so he can make a million dollars?" Armor King criticized.

"It isn't like that." King protested, Armor King was sharp in reply.

"Then what is it like?" Armor King snapped, King tried to remain calm. King sighed.

"I entered this tournament to make money to open an orphanage for the children at my church," he paused, remember his reason for being here and saying it out loud both to himself and Armor King. "The million dollars would be more than enough to give them a good home and support them." King looked away, he felt foolish explaining these things to Armor King and the other man seemed unimpressed.

"Well that's just divine," Armor King mocked. "Turned over a new leaf, I should jus bow out gracefully now and let you on your merry way, I suppose?" Armor King snarled.

"There's no pleasing you," King yelled. "You've wanted this for years, There's only one way to finish this." King snarled back.

With that Armor King put on his mask and armor and stood confident in front of the young man and they watched each other for a moment. This would settle it.

The two men dashed at each other quickly and were almost instantly engaged in each others grip. Both men holding the others shoulder with the crown of their heads touching. They pulled and pushed at each other searching for weaknesses in the others form but, neither man found that the other was prepared less in this position.

Twisting his body so that his chest faced upwards (and pulling King into the same position) Armor King without warning released his balance to the ground and fell upon his back, causing King to fall in the same way and ending the impasse. The smack of their combined bodies hitting the floor caused the entire room to shake and dust to fall from the walls.

King's back exploded with pain but, the nimble wrestler was up before Armor King could realize trying to gain the advantage by gripping Armor King's arm. Armor King knew all about King, for years he had watched King fight and he knew King was a debilitation wrestler. Weaken the opponent to a point where they couldn't fight anymore and either force a forfeit or defeat them. As King rounded his chest, Armor King grabbed his neck and applied an inhuman amount of pressure. King swatted at Armor King's wrist and in a flash Armor King took King's right arm and pulled it across his left shoulder and pulled hard, either determined to snap the arm off or choke King out.

King struggled against the pulling, trying to get his free arm to come into contact with Armor King in some way but, the strange pulling of his arm was keeping him from doing anything correctly. All at once he felt his arm being pulled apart and his neck being closed off from air.

He felt trapped, he had to think of something or else this was going to be the end, he managed to get his legs to stand in a squat, Armor King only increased his force, squeezing the life out of King, his knees shook like violets in a maelstrom but, firmed up supporting his weight. Armor King pulled more violently but, then with a swift display of force King pulled Armor King over his shoulder sending him flying back into the floor.

Armor King released King's hand and landed promptly on his back. He landed perfectly absorbing the pain with an expertise that could only be seen King wasted no time in trying to engage the older wrestler in another grab.

Armor King saw it in King's eyes, he was eyeing his leg and with all the might he could muster in a quick moment he slammed his arm into King's leg. The leg flew off the ground and took King's balance with it. The man fell unexpectedly and rolled away from Armor King.

King knew about Armor King too, he knew that he wasn't flashy but, technical and stronger than an Ox. Armor King didn't toy with his opponents; he simply obliterated them as quickly as he could and left them without any defenses. Armor King was like a sledgehammer, King had seen him break through men double his size with no problem. King remember that day Armor King killed the wolf that attacked him and a wave of fear passed through his body.

Before the fear do anything, Armor King was sitting on King's stomach and throwing punches into him. King held his arms up absorbing the blows as promptly as he could but, there was no relenting in his attacks.

One punch landed far off on his shoulder, opening up a chance, with speed King through his head into Armor King's chest, sending him falling back off his body. Armor King rolled back and was on his feet, he dashed at King but, failed to stop him.

With a technical expertise, King wrapped his arm around Armor King's neck and jumped across his back, sending both their bodies flying to the ground, he in a sitting position, Armor King faced down.

They hit the ground and bounced back up a few inches from the force and King stood to deliver another blow but, in a bout of sheer will Armor King smacked his hands on the ground and from the force his body was pushed standing straight up. The almost impossible maneuver caught King off guard. King's attack came too low and Armor King managed to take King's head and tossed it away.

The momentum from Armor King's throw sent King stumbling forward but, he managed to keep from falling by throwing himself forward into a roll and rolled back upon his feet running more steadily. He turned his face and saw Armor King behind him in pursuit and in retaliation jumped into the air and sent his legs careening back into Armor King.

The blow was substantial; Armor King was thrown back onto the ground as King landed safely. Rage filled Armor King's mind and body; he stood up quickly in defiance of the pain and found himself caught in a clothes line, his body slammed back into the ground. His vision blurred, all he could see was red, he was so angry…so livid. This wasn't supposed to happen! How could this be happening?

He stood up again but, now totally blind with rage; he looked around but, did not find King until the young wrestler grabbed him from behind and pulled his body back, slamming the top of his back into the ground while King remained positioned like a bridge.

Sliding from under Armor King, King enveloped his arm into a grip and tired to keep it there but, Armor King in such a rage punched the other wrestler so strongly that he was forced backwards rolling on the ground.

Slowly, this time, both men stood, King rubbed his chest from the punch but, noticed that Armor King seemed to be in a different state. He stood loosely swaying as if he couldn't catch his balance, he breathed heavily and thrashed about. The thrill of fighting was flushed from King's body seeing this, he leant a hand out to Armor King.

"Are you alright?" King asked; at that Armor King seemed to snap back into reality and focus on King, he dashed forward violently, King simply sidestepped and the armored wrestler landed into the wall. "Armor King…" King called out but, again he seemed to suddenly realize that King was there, he attacked but, King hadn't done more than simply smacking the attack away and Armor King fell to the ground.

When he hit the ground, his vision steadied, and he stayed there, he though about the last few seconds, he had gotten desperate, so angry he lost it all, including his sight. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. _He_ was the right one in this battle? Wasn't he? His heart pounded and shame covered his body like a sheet over a still warm corpse. No amount of pain was stronger than this feeling; it was a horrific concoction of guilt, anger and humiliation. His mind swirled violently, unable to grab a thought.

"You're not well," Kings concerned voice ripped through the silence like lance through soft flesh. He extended his hand down at Armor King but, Armor King smacked it away strongly.

"I'm fine." He snarled brutally as he stood up. He held his hand on his bad eye as it burned in such a terrible confusion. King watched him get up and the same remorse he felt before but, he knew sympathy would only anger him further.

"If you want to continue we can-" King began but, Armor King cut him off.

"No," He said cruel but, quietly. "You've won." He admitted to himself and King. He looked into King's eyes for once there was something _not_ stirring in his stomach when he looked at King. His anger was with himself.

"You don't have to," King started to suggest. "I mean, we can call it a draw and pick up when you're feeling better"

"I'm fine!" Armor King barked, the sheer force of his voice caused King to step back. It echoed in the room before falling into silence. They stood there in the silence unsure of what to do. Moving slowly, Armor King took off his mask and his long hair fell about his face obscuring it from King's view.

"The best man won." Armor King spoke slowly and deliberately before, walking passed King. Even when they were inches away from each other Armor King's hair veiled his face. King felt like he should have said something but, he didn't. The silence grew all around him, Armor King was gone and he was the winner. One step closer to the million dollars and his dream orphanage but, he didn't feel victorious, he only felt confused and so like all times of confusion he knelt down on one knee and prayed.


	40. Phoenix Rising

**Change of Hearts**

The glass was empty.

King rubbed his head softly, then rougher, then dug his nails into his skull, trying to tear out the thoughts and memories. He put the glass on the rosewood paneling and watched it as the glass distorted the look of the wood, his life felt the way the wood looked.

"Another" He moaned at the bartender and he obeyed and poured another drink into the glass, King watched it for a long moment and fell into a reverie.

Paul Phoenix was his opponent, a tough fighter from America, or so he had heard. They fought but, King couldn't even lay a solid blow on the man. He was quick and smart but, above all _powerful_. King had never experienced a power like that, three blows, _three blows_ and King was spent, there were punches that didn't even land squarely that exasperated him and the ones that did land, nearly crushed his body. One punch landed in his stomach so hard that he felt his breath detonated out of his mouth, his back slammed against the wall. The room spinning, spinning, spinning, spinning, Paul standing upright, unfazed winning. King grabbed his bearings and attacked again but, his attacks were like rain on mountains, every blow just fell on Paul like nothing and he would counter with something more powerful.

With every passing moment King saw his dreams dashed; he had gotten through everything else but, at some point of the fight he knew it was all over. At one point he had managed to get Paul in a grab on his side but, with seemingly little effort Paul pushed his shoulder out and sent King careening through the air into a wall.

He took a sip of the drink and it bitterly crossed his lips, onto his tongue and burned down his throat. It was like acid clearing his insides but, also his mind. He _had_ to forget, he had to forget how close he had come to victory and lost it. He sipped again and felt his hand wet. He held his face crying, tears burning a hole in his hand.

He turned it into a fist and threw it into the air, the same way he had thrown it at Paul and with the same result; nothing.

He threw the punch at Paul and it landed squarely between Paul's hand and the man tossed King like a rag doll around the room. A judo expert; King found all the force of his attacks used against him, his balanced compromised at every turn. The sky fell every time Paul attacked, King felt everything around him imploding. Every bit of hope and ambition collecting into Paul's might fist and then exploding with impact, spewing them everywhere, on the walls, on the ceiling, on the floor, on the windows, the doors, the tables, the chairs, the desk, the drawer, all over King's body, all gone, strewn about like memoirs of a man who lacked ambition his entire life.

He took another dip of the drink, his head was pounding but, it didn't matter soon the drink would make it go away and then he would be back on the plane, back to Mexico to face his failures. He drunk more, taking a liberal gulp sending the inside of his throat on a hellish burning ride. He swooned slightly, not from his coming inebriation but, from his already passed defeat. Every moment he felt Paul punching and weaving and kicking. His body was still in pain but, none of that matter.

King sighed and someone sat next to him, instinctively he moved away and reflexively growled a bit. He guarded his drink as if the person was going to snatch it from him. With his drink in hand he looked into it, almost mesmerized, there was so little yet, he needed so much more. The man who had sat next to him hadn't backed off, it was almost as if he was trying to sit close to King. King frowned and moved a little more to the side and took the rest of the drink in one quick motion and then slammed the glass back onto the wood with an exaggerated force.

The sound of the glass brought back memories of Paul's fist on his skin, it echoed in the room and it echoed in the mind, over and over and over and over and over and over, louder and louder and louder, intense, strong, painful, his skin, his muscles his soul destroyed!

"Another" King called to the bartender solemnly and the bartender went to make another when another voice spoke up.

"I think he's had enough," the voice spoke evenly and sternly, enough to make the bartender stop with making the drink and move on to another patron.

King, annoyed, loudly groaned in protest. Who the hell was this guy to tell the bartender to stop serving him? He wasn't even drunk yet, that was the point of coming here and now this man was going to take this from him just like Paul had stolen the Tekken tournament from him. In a long motion he turned to the man and when his eyes rested on him, King felt the pit of his stomach twist and lurch slowly and he felt as if he was going to vomit at the sight. He groaned loudly again and even a few words of protest trickled out of his mouth by accident and loss of control. The other man spoke:

"I saw your fight." King ignored the comment, or perhaps he just didn't hear it over his exaggerated movements.

"Why are you here, Armor King?" He asked sloppily, Armor King didn't turn his face to King but, spoke calmly to him.

"I told you, I saw your fight." Armor King repeated; King rolled his eyes and put the empty drink glass back to his lips to get whatever he could from it.

"Ah!" King spat. "So you've come to gloat" King surmised, he tapped his fingers loudly on the wood.

"Not quite," Armor King signaled to the bartender to bring him the same drink King had ordered, the bartender did so quietly. "It was a good fight, I thought you deserved to know that." Armor King spoke, he took a sip and cocked his head to the side in surprise satisfaction.

"Oh, whatever Armor!" King spoke loudly. "I don't have the time for you today!" Armor King nodded and took another sip.

"No, King," Armor King spoke. "It took a lot for me to come here, I think you should hear what I have to say," King went to protest but, his hand flew up and no words came out of his open mouth. "So, how does it feel to lose?" he asked; King sneered and moved away but, Armor King grabbed his arm to keep him from leaving. King's eyes shot to the hand on his wrist and watched it. It wasn't a grip at all, it was light, he could break away from it if he wanted but, for some reason the lack of force made it all the more difficult to do so, and so he sat again. "Humor me," Armor King insisted.

"It's awful," King blurted, there was a pause as Armor King didn't answer, King continued less dramatically. "I had everything riding on this, I don't think I ever really thought about losing and what it meant. Now there feels like there's nothing left to do but, sink into the ground." King admitted; Armor King nodded and turned to the young wrestler.

It was then King looked into the other man's face for the first time in years, His skin was dark almost like purple, eggplant color, his face was defined and he was quite handsome with long shining black hair that came down slightly beyond his shoulders. His face was still the same after all these years, like he hadn't aged a day and when it wasn't distorted with anger it looked almost brotherly and comforting.

"You know what feels worse than that?" Armor King asked hypothetically. "Realizing you've been a fool for so long." Armor King concluded.

"What are you talking about?" King asked.

"After you won our fight, I felt empty," Armor King began. "I felt as if the entire world could collapse at that moment and I wouldn't care. I walked the street with an anger so powerful I couldn't walk straight. I drank, I ate, I did whatever I could to console this fire inside of me but, no matter what I tried it only seemed to get worse," He moved his hair from his face, King could see his red eye. "So, when I heard you'd be having a match I decided to secretly attend and, I don't know, maybe it would make something make more sense," He sighed. "When you lost, I thought I would be justified, that the burning in my soul would end but, it didn't. It stayed there and even worse I felt _remorse_ that you lost." He scoffed, no longer telling his story to King but, just speaking aloud. "What kind of fool was I to feel _bad_ for the man I spent hating for so long. Well I saw you and I saw how gracious you were to your opponent and I thought about how I was to you and then I saw when he left." Armor King went on, King frowned.

"You saw that?" he asked, sheepishly.

"Yes, I saw you breakdown, I saw you cry. That's what made me thing how wrong I was. How silly I had been all these years and why I was so mad I lost our fight. It wasn't because you won, it was because _I_ lost. I was so angry at you, that I couldn't even keep myself together long enough to win our fight, which meant, I didn't deserve to win. Before I met you in this tournament I came across a young native American girl whom is in the tournament to avenge the death of her father." He thought amount about her. "I told her that revenge was acceptable, that as long as you thought success was at hand it was worth a try. As long as you feel your wrong was corrected, it would all be fine." He laughed at the words. "And at the time that's what I thought but, it's not true is it? Nothing is going to change what happened; no amount of revenge can turn back time and make things different. I was convinced that you hadn't changed, I didn't _want_ you to have changed, I wanted to fight that kid from years ago, I wanted to show _him_ he was wrong but, you had learned that already." He took a sip of the drink. "When I saw you cry, I knew it wasn't for the fact that you lost, it was all about that orphanage you mentioned, something real and tangible and I knew I had been fighting a good man with so much malice in my heart." King just watched him speak, unsure of what exactly Armor King was trying to say.

"I, uh…" King began, Armor King smiled, smiled it was an odd feature on his face.

"Just let me finish, Rey" Armor King spoke. "So I realized I was wrong and the best man _had_ won and I had to find you and apologize. Apologize for being so pig headed all these years." Armor King looked at him and shrugged, King sat stunned, the alcohol seemed to be rushing away from his body, what he was hearing was somewhat unbelievable.

"its fine," King spoke, unsure of what else to say. "I've forgiven you a long time ago." Armor King shook his head and his hair shook with it.

"No, its not fine, I have to make some things right." Armor King said. "The first is to let you know that the bottle isn't your friend," he tapped the glass in front of King. "Its an indulgence but, it can destroy you if you let it," Armor King warned, King looked away shamed.

"I know, I shouldn't have-"

"There's no need to beat yourself up about it, just remember that," Armor King spoke softly to him. "There was something else…" Armor King began to reach into his pocket.

"Something else?" King asked. Armor King nodded.

"In my years as a wrestler I've made a good amount of money. I don't live lavishly so most of it just sits in the bank, so I don't want you to think this is any skin off my nose," He pulled a little slip of paper and put it in front of King, King picked it up and read it. "Doing something for someone else is always what I intend my money for and this seems right." King paused in thought, for a moment nothing flowed anywhere. He read the check over and over and over again.

"I couldn't possibly," King started.

"Of course _you_ can't but, those kids can use that ten-thousand." Armor King corrected; King looked at Armor King, tears in his eyes.

"Why, though?" King started. "I mean this is not necessary." King went on.

"I know but, I think you deserve it and it's a way for me to make amends to myself." Armor King explained.

"All I want is to build that orphanage," King said in a daze. "I would _have_ to pay you back." King explained, Armor King shrugged.

"If you feel so inclined," He agreed. "I have a way you could pay me back." Armor King went on. King's eyes widened at the opportunity, he smiled at the man this time who smiled at him. Things had changed radically and quickly.

"Anything," King readily answered. Armor King nodded and took the last gulp of the drink.

"Tag team match-up tournaments pay more than single match-ups," He started. "I haven't been able to find a suitable partner until recently." Armor King spoke; King looked confused.

"Who?" King asked, the older man looked at him strangely. "me!" King asked shocked; Armor King laughed softly.

"Would you be interested?" Armor King asked, King rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well, yes, I mean, you have to understand this is all so strange." King answered. "If you want me to I would, you're the best wrestler I've ever faced." King added.

"Well the same goes to you," Armor King relayed. "Together I think we could really rule the circuit."

"How would I pay you back though?"

"Simple, We win, you take half I take half until you've paid in full and then we can see from there." Armor King explained. "You've technically placed third in the Tekken tournament which means you'll have a good deal of publicity around you."

"I suppose that's true," King thought for a moment. "Then I accept." He said happily; Armor King smiled widely and patted King on the back, the feel of his hand lightly on his back, different from the blows from before, it felt good.

"That's great," He said. "Partner…" He put his hand out to shake King's and King shook it, the men smiled at each other shaking hands, unaware they had knocked over the drink glass only inches away.


	41. Iron Fist

**Iron Fist**

The heat of the sun vanished as the fist came into contact with this chest, all in one moment he felt pain, agony and admiration. It felt as if the blue sky had fallen upon him but, simultaneously threw the coolness of the sea upon his fire eaten back. His mind danced with the idea that had been presented to him so well,where skill and determination became one and fed the soul like a nursing mother to a starving child. His muscles threatened to explode inside of his arms in respite but, his mind remained calm and with ease allowed the pain to slip from his chest evenly through his body and subside as a fading dream.

Defeat had never been a pleasurable experience but, today it was not as bitter as usual. To be defeated by a knave was embarrassing, to be cut down in your prime was another pill better not swallowed but, to be defeated by one with such skill and determination that it rivaled your own _that_ was a defeat that was tameable. His feet slid on the ground backwards, the dirt pulled up and clouded his ankles like a powdery cuff. Everything was in motion, his body, his mind, time and most of all, his victory. Running ever so quickly away, into the horizon, swallowed up by a golden sun that burned it into a column of ashes never to be reassembled again.

His heel braced his body to a stop, what more was there to do or say in this matter? When it was over it was over, one couldn't grasp onto a rope that didn't exist when they were free falling from the sky. The impact was inevitable and necessary, or else the world would be a random chaotic place that merit would suffocate in. His arms loosened to his sides, he's chest breathed slowly but, with extreme purpose, no longer to fight but, with the diminished purpose to live. He put his hands up and smiled, a difficult process in at this very moment, his muscles twisted to do the opposite but, he forced it to be.

"I'm done," Paul called out; Kazuya's body half relaxed, an old passion of distrust gripping his body, he eyed the American with the focus of a eagle; sharp, decisive, predatory. "I've lost!" He called again, this second exclamation caused Kazuya to stop all actions. His muscular body at his fractured form of ease.

A crow cawed in the distance, it called the name of victory to Paul, death hung on the air like a stunted stench that refused to die. Paul's stomach turned slightly but, he kept his focus, he stood straight and nodded at his opponent in admiration. Kazuya's mouth tensed just before he spoke.

"You fought well," he said sternly, a confidence in his voice that had not always been there. He walked over slowly, calmly feeling the tension of battle dispersed in the air. There was no thrill in the air, his victory was also not bittersweet, it simply was another stepping stone behind him on his trail.

Seeing Kazuya at ease allowed Paul to calm himself considerably and he stretched up and then down to his toes. A good fight was always an enjoyable thing, regardless of the outcome.

"I knew one of us would make it," Paul spoke casually. "When Law told me he was out in the first round, I was surprised but, I knew you and I would last much longer and here we are," he paused and chuckled a bit. "Well here you are, the finalist to the greatest tournament ever held!" He smiled genuinely, Kauzya spoke with purpose without pause.

"Prestige doesn't concern me, I will find pride when I have won this tournament." Paul nodded, he put his hand out to shake Kazuya's hand and Kazuya shook with understated strength.

"Staying focus?" Paul nodded happily. "Good thing to do, better to not get overexcited and lose all your ability." Paul concluded; Kazuya grunted, not so much in agreement but, in mere response.

"Heihachi Mishima," the name fell out of his mouth like a still born child from a womb. "is a powerful opponent, against him strength is trivial." His voice was steady, perfectly poised. "Resolve is the only tool against him." The words heavy on Paul, it was almost as if the two were having two different conversations. Paul took it with stride and his positivity faded none.

"They say he's the strongest man on the planet," Paul reminded. "A pretty hefty title to defeat." Paul went on. Kazuya looked away, his body tense talking about this man but, he did not run from the conversation as he did in the past.

"He is only a man," Kazuya reminded, a dark cloud enveloped his mind, his voiced deepened and spoke again. "Men are not everlasting, defeat follows them around, waiting to strike." His eyes glossed for a moment as he entered his own mind, a privacy no one else could see or feel. He listened to it, he cherished it, it comforted him and cradled him like the child he was.

"So you think you can really beat him?" Paul asked Kazuya for a moment didn't move, frozen in a frame of time. He came out of it with a calm breath.

"Its not a matter of what I think. The fight is already determined, I simply need to fulfill my fate." Kazuya spoke determined; Paul nodded.

"So we're home free?" Paul asked. "I can start spending my share as soon as I get back?" He joked, Kazuya didn't acknowledge the joke with humor.

"Money doesn't interest me," Kazuya said with solidity. "Whatever money I win from this tournament will be yours to spend." Paul's face, melted into disbelief.

"I can keep the million if I win?" Paul asked in astonishment. Kazuya nodded his head and spoke from his chest.

"I've waited many years for tomorrow, my victory will complete everything I've ever wished for." Kazuya explained, Paul felt a new respect (albeit confused) for the man who stood before him.

"That's amazing Henry," Kazuya didn't react, forgetting that this was the name he had lied to Paul with. "What will you do afterwords?" Paul asked.

Kazuya had not thought about it, in face he couldn't process what the next day would look like, being face to face with Heihachi. Afterwords was a different world, a different existence, his life after the defeat of the patriarch was inherently rich. Even death a moment after could not soil it. His life was bound to the death of Heihachi Mishima.

"I don't know." Kazuya answered after a long moment of thinking. "I've always lived day to day, only thinking about fighting Heihachi Mishima, I will have to go back to that life, which is no problem for me." Paul frowned.

"Do you know Heihachi Mishima personally?" Paul asked; the questioned burned into his mind and echoed in his mind over and over again. He felt the words fall down a bottomless pit, forever free falling into the depths of his darkest secrets.

"Yes." he heard himself before he could stop, Paul face opened with a slight understanding. "He was someone I trusted a long time ago." Kazuya spoke.

"What happened?" Paul pried; Kazuya felt his inner mind speak viciously but, he remained composed.

"He betrayed me." Kazuya answered tersely and Paul got the point from his shortness.

"Well, you could always come back to Arizona with me and Law," Paul suggested. "With all the press I'll get from coming in second, Law and I will probably be able to open a better dojo, we could use someone like you." Paul suggested; Kazuya's body showed no interest.

"It is a possibility," he answered absently. His mind turned over the moment Heihachi would see his face again, it played it once, twice, three times all different all glorious, also absently he rubbed his middle finger and thumb together. "My mind is only focused on my life as far as tomorrow." Kazuya explained; Paul nodded but, even his mind felt he didn't understand this man's actual focus.

"Well you're more than capable Henry" Paul added. "I've never fought anyone as powerful as you." he admitted.

"You are powerful as well," Kazuya's focus narrowed to Paul. "More than likely the strongest man in the world" he continued, Paul seemed surprised.

"Aside from you and maybe Mishima." he corrected; Kazuya nodded.

"Even with those exceptions, I have found you to be severe in power," Kazuya continued on. "That power should serve you well"

"It always has," Paul nodded. "Well I guess this is it" Paul said with finality; Kazuya retreated back into his mind.

"I suppose it is."

"The next time I see you, I guess you'll be the king of the iron fist." Paul surmised; he shook Kazuya's hand.

"The next time you see me both our worlds will have changed." They both nodded at this and within moments Paul was on his way, away from Kazuya.

Kazuya lingered there, almost entranced by nothingness, he breathed slowly and heavily, his heart raced and he felt his chest sparked aflame.

The wind blew softly and whispered in his ear something he had not heard in many years, he turned his face to the left and whispered back:

"We will."


	42. Role Reversal

**Role Reversal (0 – 6 days after the King of Iron Fist Tournament I)**

The elevator was practically silent as it ascended, except for a small hum from the vibration and the occasional chime when it passed a floor. The lights were clean, clean white; the kind you'd expect to be in a laboratory or a very upscale hospital. The felt like ill placed spotlights to Nina, she wished they'd just go out and leave her in silence, they were louder than anything else, the hum, the chimes, her breathing, all eclipsed by the screaming lights.

_Ding_.

Another floor, she had been here for fifteen minutes now, she knew what she had to do. Her leg wasn't fully better but, was well enough to undertake this last assignment. Her eyes closed she focused inward; she was terribly angry at losing against that wrestler still and needed to keep her composure to ensure that she completed this assignment with no outstanding issues.

_Ding._

She wrapped her fingers once and then again and again on the handle. It wasn't cold anymore, it was warm from her grip, from the friction of kickback; warm from the fire in her blood begging to be released. She took a deep breath and sighed, eyes still closed she imagined what she would see when the doors finally slid open. Would her fate be standing there, in all his glory? Unaware of what was about to happen or perhaps even, aware waiting for her with gloating eyes, egging her on? Perhaps there would be nothing, just her walking down another empty hall, or maybe it would be filled with a thousand things from a thousand terrible, nightmares. It did not matter, they would all fall one and the same.

_Ding_.

How many floors were left now? She counted all the chimes in her mind again, each one like a soft bullet to the brain. There were only two left until the last chime and the doors would slide open and she would see something new. She kept her mind focused again, this was to be easy, in and out, now dawdling, not sight seeing nothing to grab, steal or extort. All she needed was one piece of information and she would be on her way. Her other hand was gripped in a fist and she only noticed because she began to dig her nails into her own palm. She loosened the grip and flexed her hand. '_calm Nina, stay calm'_ she cooed to herself silently. Her hair in a ponytail she finally opened her eyes to stare at the metallic door.

_Ding_.

This was it, for some reason her mind had been building up to this moment since she entered the Mishima Heavy Industries corporate offices. She took the key card that rested between her palm and the butt of the gun and looked at it. Bloodied and wet, she wiped it off on the elevator wall. It had some man's name on it, a man who didn't survive her encounter downstairs. He wouldn't be needing it anymore, so she put it in her pocket nicely and patted it. It had gotten her this far, up to the restricted floor, who knew what else it could do for her. For the first time she smiled.

_Ding_.

The hall way was just as flushed with the white lights as the elevator. It ran in two direction; to the right of the elevator was another hallway, to the left a wall. Six feet from the elevator on the left was a door that lead to an office. On the right; twelve feet of open space and then a wall stood there, that enclosed the rest of the hallway. Separating this main hall from a new hall were two burgundy doors that were held open by magnets on chains, attached to matching magnets on the wall. Through those doors there was a larger hall with doors every 9 feet, on either side, that lead to offices or working areas. An armed guard came out of the second door on the right side. He had worked on this floor the entire time he worked for Mishima heavy Industries, he knew everyone who came to this floor and was good friends with them so when the elevator chimed he smiled and turned from the office to see who was coming up the elevator.

It was the last thing he ever saw.

When the doors parted he barely had enough time to see the blonde hair with Nina fired upon him. The gun making a loud blurting shot, ten rounds gone, lost somewhere in his body within seconds. She walked quickly down the hall, looking around for anyone else before, long she was over the body and examining it. Nothing on him of importance; she continued down the hall hurriedly. At the end of the hall two more men came out of a room, one a worker with no weapon, the other an armed guard, she shot both of them before they could process what was going on but, no sooner than their bodies hit the floor an alarm blared and all the lights went dark except for some orange emergency lights that made it possible to see. She turned the corner and down the hall were several armed men.

"There they are!" one man yelled; Nina calmed reached to her side and picked out a small cylindrical object and tossed it in their direction. It exploded harshly but, with a concentrated explosion and their bodies went flying through the air like toys in a hurricane.

Without surveying the damage she turned right and went through a door to a staircase. The staircase split in two, both going up but, one going left and the other going right but, both reaching the next floor. Coming down the left side a man shot at Nina and missed, she threw her body onto the stairs and another stream of bullets riddled another man's body. He grabbed himself as if shocked by the occurrence and fell over the side.

Nina got up and continued on, walking up the right side of the staircase this time slower, she checked the clip in her gun and sucked her teeth; she was nearly out. She stopped on the side of the door and waited; it swung open and a man ran through to go down the steps but, only made it through the door when Nina fired into his head. His body jerked and slammed into the wall. Blood spurted from his would and hit her but, she didn't flinch. She kicked the door with all her strength swinging it back into the next man whom it hit hard and knocked down; Nina went through the door and found herself looking into a gun.

With a slap of her hand she narrowly avoided being shot, the bullet hitting the fire extinguisher next to her, it popped loudly and shot out foam at high speed into the man's face. He stumbled backwards and she grabbed his arm and snapped it, like a twig, bending him over with the force of one hand she pulled out her knife with the other and stabbed him powerfully in the back of his neck. He made a brief sound that might have been a scream but, went limp shortly after.

She threw his body to the ground and looked around, left; nothing, right; a man in a large white lab coat, the fear in his eyes, she knew he was the one she was looking for. Their eyes met for a moment but, he then took off in the opposite direction, running as quickly as he could. Like a lion after its prey Nina, tossed herself running after him, she threw her gun to the ground and went into a holster for a smaller hand gun.

Nina was quicker than him, he tried to reach the door and lock himself in (as if it would have made a difference) but, when he turned around to see where she was, she pointed the gun and fired. One shot and the bullet screamed through the air and slammed into his left shoulder. As if hit by a boulder his body lifted off the ground and he fell back; Nina was on top of him in seconds, she held the gun to his chest and gritted her teeth, his eyes filled with fear his mouth moved and said words that may or may not been in some language.

"Shut up!" She barked; spit coming from her mouth and onto his face. His eyes widened but, his mouth clenched shut. "Where is he!" She demanded; he stared, startled like his body was alive but, his mind had collapsed. A thousand thoughts gridlocked in his brain, he only could shake his head. Frustrated she slapped him with the gun, his lip busting like a balloon filled with blood. "Answer me!" She put the gun down quickly and pulled out her knife and dug it into his bullet wound, the blade of the knife hacking through skin and muscle eventually scraping against the lead of the bullet, she turned it and wedge between the lead and muscle and pulled the bullet out with no caution. The man screamed horrifically and twisted to try to get away but to no avail. Through the screams one thought managed to come through clearly.

"Who!"

She plucked the bullet out and put the knife to his neck, his screaming suddenly silenced by the wordless threat.

"Heihachi Mishima!" She snarled; his eyes looked confused but, he never answered, from within a room something started speaking. At first it was no interest but, when the words 'king of iron first' came up her ears readjusted; she turned her face to the radio it spoke:

"_At this time we are announcing that the King of Iron Fist tournament is over. I repeat this time official reports are stating that the Tekken tournament is in fact concluded. Please adjust your plans accordingly and report to your predestinated areas_"

Her mouth moved without thought, she spoke without premeditation.

"No…" she whispered; suddenly it didn't matter anymore. The man under her was whimpering in pain and bleeding on her but, it was if he wasn't there. She was too late, she failed, she hadn't completed her end of the contract. She stood reflexively and began walking away.

Nina couldn't even recall how she had gotten back to her hotel but, when she was there she started packing quickly. It wouldn't be long now before the people who hired her started to come after her. Her mind was just a series of long curses, how could she have let this happen? It was such an easy job, now things were worse. As she was putting things away the phone in the room rang, she picked it up on the first ring.

"Hello?" she spoke quickly, her voice was a sharp as a razor blade.

"Nina Williams?" The voice on the other end spoke; quickly she slammed the phone down. Her legs moved with resolve to the door with one bad in hand, she kept her head down as she walked down the steps. Other patrons walked passed her, unaware of everything. How could people not know how _dangerous_ things were? She thought to herself. Happy couples walking up the stairs, on the first floor drinking at the bar, checking in, checking out. She kept her head down and went to the exit when she noticed two men with hats walk in. She slowed her pace to a stop when she noticed them, she took a few steps back, their attention was focused solely on her but, the didn't move quickly. One man looked around, clearly caring about making a scene. Nina felt her back and the gun wedged between her pants and lower back. She surmised if there were these two the chances were there were others and so without thought she turned and ran to the bar.

Tossing herself over the bar, the bartender fell over in surprise, she slammed the door open to the kitchen, she looked back as the door swung closed again but, saw that the men were right behind her. She ran quickly and could hear their footsteps in the kitchen with her, the cooks alarmed, move in and out of the way, she tossed them about, with pans and pots clanging to the ground. Her feet jumped over them, to keep from falling, she turned her face again to see one of the men was breathing down her back, he reached out for her and she reached out to a pot of water on the stove, grabbed it and swung it back at him. The boiling water hit his face like brick wall, the hand that reached out to grab Nina snatched back to grab his face as the skin on it fell off like wax. He scream curdled with pain and the taste of superheated water searing through his tongue.

Without looking back she continued on throwing herself out the door into the alleyway behind the hotel. She got up running to the end of the block to mix in with the crowed, when the second man loudly exited as well. She threw her arm back shooting as she did so and caught one bullet into his chest, the other one harmlessly landing on the wall.

The gunshot sent the crowd into a panic and she pushed her way into them running as fast as she could, pushing over men, woman and children, there was another man on her heels already. She snapped her head back to make out a hat with a white rim, she gritted her teeth and shot at him, hitting a woman in the back, she screamed mortally as she fell to the ground and the people around threw themselves to the ground as well. Her eyes spotted a man getting out of a parked car, she darted in that direction and threw her butt onto the hood sliding across it. She threw the man into the street and he was clipped by a passing car, before he could close the door. She threw herself inside and started the car. Ahead and on the sidewalk she saw the man in the black with white rim hat, and she kept her eyes on him as she hit the acceleration. The car spun out for a moment but, then leapt forward; just as it did the man flew through the air and landed on the hood.

Nina threw the wheel to the left, speeding the car into traffic and with her right hand took her hand gun and pointed it at the window shield. The man's face opened with shock but, before he could push himself off she shot twice, the bullets smashing through the glass into his body. He moved oddly before his body fell off the car and leg was smashed under the front, driver' side wheel.

Nina pressed the acceleration with all her might and the car careened through traffic, the traffic light turned red but, she slowed none entering the cross street but, no sooner than that another car smashed into her passenger side and her car spun forward. Trying to keep control she slammed the break and the car spun to a screeching stop. Hey eyes locked on the car that hit her and to her dismay there was another man with a black hat with a white rim.

"God damn it." She spat; she looked in the rear-view mirror and saw the bridge, it was her only chance; she took her hand and pulled the gear into reverse as hard as she could and slammed the acceleration. The car screeched in a terrible shrill and pulled backwards. She swung the wheel and shifted back into drive and drove to the bridge.

Her eyes glanced into the rear-view mirror, the were following her; she put her hand in the bag on the passenger side, the one she had packed just in case. She pulled out two metallic cylindrical objects, she put one next to the bag and fiddled with the one in her hand for a moment. The timer on it in red numbers raised to a minute and she put it down, she took the other one and unscrewed it and pulled something out before putting it back in the bag and focusing on the road.

When she was on the bridge she slammed the car to a stop and took her bag and hopped out. She crouched at the hood and pointed the gun, taking shots at the incoming car, it was only to serve as a distraction, she noticed another car behind it and then made her way to the bridge railing. She looked at her watch.

00:34

She flipped her hair as the first car came to a stop; bullets came at her but, she stayed safely behind the car, every so often taking a shot back. She wrapped her bag around her arm and sucked her teeth. The other car had stopped only a few inches from the first; the perfect position, she thought as she crept up to the railing.

00:17

She climbed onto the hood, using the roof as a shield and fired, she just needed one second of silence, and as if her wish was heard, there was one. Quickly she climbed up to the roof lying her stomach onto it and firing at them. She looked at her watch again

00:10

She raised the gun in the air, and tossed it to them, the action spurred and end to the bullet fire and in one quick motion she jumped off the roof of the car and over the railing of the bridge.

Her body flew through the air, tumbling down to the water, her bag wrapped around her arm jerking in the wind. She put her arms in front of her and the fingers were the first to touch the cool water, before it enveloped her hands and hugged her wrist, then dressed her arms like long elegant gloves.

And just as her head touched the cool water, heat bit at her feet. The explosion came a moment later and pushed her further into the water.

The entire bridge shook and snapped apart like a tree in a tornado. The three cars thrown into the air like dumb birds, falling back to the steel bridge; fire engulfing everything. The entire structure ripped into chaos and horrific death.

Nina's body submerged in water swam with the current, never looking up at the carnage, never looking back at her doing.

They were relentless.

Everywhere she went she found more of them. Men with black hats with white rims; she escaped them all but, she found herself for five days fleeing. On the fifth day the telephone, in the cheap motel she was staying in, rang. Somehow they always found her, she avoided picking up the entire time but, today she changed her mind.

"Hello?"

"Nina Williams?" It was the same voice as before. She tossed her head to the side and flipped her hair.

"Yes." She finally answered; at that the voice became more personable taking a breath and going on.

"I think we've gone too far," the voice spoke. "Don't you?" she breathed into the phone for a moment before answering.

"Sure." She answered shortly

"All those innocent people," he said remorsefully "We could easily figure out a compromise for this, there's no need to be so violent with each other." He went on.

"When and where?" she wasn't one for small talk and the voice on the other end seemed to understand that

"The Woolworth building in downtown, third floor, five p.m." The voice on the end spoke.

"Fine" she rang off and stared at the phone for a long moment. It was a trap but, what other choice did she have?

She parted her blonde hair and walked into the building. She did it slowly and kept her head down to the hair draped her like a veil. On her arm the bag, that still had some wetness to it, she carried it unsure as she walked up the steps.

Three flights she remembered, that's what she was told. Three flights and so she walked three flights. When she did there was a large room and two men standing there, they motioned her inside, she walked in.

"Ms. Williams." One man spoke; she remembered not to speak, that's what was the best choice not to speak. "So what shall we discuss?" he smiled and came closer.]

A block away from the abandoned Woolworth building was an outdoor train station. One could see into the windows easily from a train parked there but, because of the dirtiness it was obscured. Yet still she stared from the train into the third floor window patiently, in the corner of her eye she could see her red hair, she moved it out of the way before looking at her watch.

Three O'Clock exactly.

If she hadn't looked up she would have missed the two flashes of light. She recognized them, the same flashes of lights guns caused in darkness. She was dead, no doubt it, she would have never seen it coming.

Nina scratched inside of her red wig and thought for a moment. She didn't feel in the least remorseful for paying the young prostitute to go into the building in her place, she didn't feel guilty about giving her a blonde wig to look like Nina and she didn't feel guilty about what she was about to do.

"Three O'Clock to Ogden," the conductor announced; she put her hand in her small purse, thinking about the cylindrical object she slipped into the young girls' bag, she felt the trigger on the small detonator and without second thought pressed it. The third floor erupted with a flash again but, this was different. The entire building shook and dust fell from it. People down below ducked down and ran from it. Fear in their hearts, they scattered like insects from the foot of a giant.

She laid back and closed her eyes as the train departed the station, a sigh floated from her body. That was it. They were dead and for all they knew she was dead; this was all an ordeal she wished to forget about.

She could feel the vibration of the train as it moved forward under her feet; she could hear the click of the ticket clerk coming from behind her. Without opening her eyes she pulled it out and placed it on the chair next to her. She was happy, an odd sensation for her. Happy to be done with it all, a mission better left forgotten, one that she would never have to think about again.

The click of the ticket clerk was upon her and she could feel him take her ticket and punch it but, something about his presence lingered, slowly she opened her eyes and looked at him.

The first thing she noticed was a black hat and white rim.

She sat up just as he pulled the gun out and faced it to her chest. She opened her right hand as to not alarm him, he smiled and came closer an inch, she pointed her small purse at him still looking him in the eye and fired twice at his chest.


	43. Right Hand Men

**Right Hand Men**

There were many of them, more Manji than anyone had seen together outside of the village in many years. To be among so many of their brethren gave birth to a feeling of pride but, simultaneously issued a tense fear of what was going to happen in the next few minutes. Considering what happened the last time this many Manji were gathered together the current group seemed to be in good spirits. They stood together patting each other on the back and wishing luck among each other, some even telling jokes and laughing with one another.

In the distance the bunker stood plain and stupid looking. It looked like a giant non-functioning box upon the terrain, grey in nature but, by circumstance dirty with a reddish covering from the dust that encircled it. It was large, larger than any of the Manji had assumed it would be. Lifted off the ground only three stories but, dug into the ground several and behind it, out of sight was a smaller bunker.

Feng stood proud and tall looking over all the men who were there and combed his hair with his hand slowly. Raids were always dangerous but, it was rare for all of these Manji to be there, friends he had never fought with before in the field. It was exciting in that manner but, the fact that they needed this many men to achieve success did bother him somewhat.

Feng never thought he'd be the leader of the Manji strike force, it was something that, when he was younger, was saved for the Yoshimitsu and he never had any wish to be the leader of the Manji in general. He respected the role but, it was a responsibility that simply was too big for him, as a teenager he was always inconclusive in moral situations, sometimes it felt as if the Manji were doing wrong but, for the right reasons. The balance of virtuosity was something he felt he would fail at time and time again. He did find that he was good at giving orders and taking them, the majority of his peers trusted him in battle and he was among the best fighters in the clan. When he reached his late teens the council appointed him to be the general teacher for the younger children, something he was totally satisfied with. This put him in direct contact with all three generations of Manji and in high esteem with them all, when the current Yoshimistu took the role of strike team leader and made it its own position separate from the Yoshimistsu role and then put him as the leader Feng wasn't sure what he was going to do with it. It seemed like a large burden to command a group of people which included warriors older and, more than likely, more experienced than him all without the extra benefit of having the title as leader.

He found that that wasn't faced with the problem of being under qualified. Before he was named to this position the strike team's members trained individually but, closely with the others but, now Feng trained them all together, daily programs that kept them busy, in shape and quick thinking. They worked as a whole team instead of many different members together. It felt more cohesive this was and Feng could see brought confidence to himself and to the other Manji.

He worked closely with Yoshimitsu, they went out into the city every week, he was only two years older than Yoshimitsu but, at times seemed to be widely older and widely older than him. As a leader Yoshimitsu showed a wisdom and an unbreakable virtue, in situations that seemed almost impossible to judge he showed a coolness and had always made the right choices. His level of respect was higher than Feng could remember for any other one person, everyone found Yoshimitsu to be approachable and worthy of guiding them, very few had doubted him either vocally or in secret.

Feng looked at all the men again, some were getting restless and with good reason. They had been outside the bunker for a good deal of time now waiting for the signal to approach. He turned his face to the hill that raised above the bunker and pulled his binoculars to his face, she was still standing there too, less patiently before, he stared at her for some time and as if she could sense this was happening the fox mask turned towards him. It was too far of a distance for her to see him looking at her but, the fox mask seem to be directed right at his face. It was unnerving and he put the the binoculars down and looked away.

Kunimtsu stood quietly, the wind blew silently around her, within her mask she breathed normally waiting with a lack of interest of what she was doing. Standing was not her idea of an interesting time but, she knew her threshold of patience was severely stunted.

She was particularly surprised when Yoshimitsu alerted her that they were exiting the tournament, up until that point she had been doing rather well and was starting to think getting to the final round was going to be a simple task. Giving up the tournament bothered her but, the chance at making more, more immediately and more discreetly piqued her interest. Yoshimistu had shown her the plans for the bunker and she knew immediately, that it would be heavily guarded and require a sizable strike force to achieve success. So far the first part of her surmising had been correct, there were a _lot_ of Manji here, some of whom she has not seen in a long time. The second would be established as soon as Yoshimitsu gave her the go ahead to enter.

This would be the first time in a long time she worked this close with Feng and it gave her a considerable abount of satisfaction. She admired Feng greatly, they grew up somewhat as cousins, as children they were particularly competitive with each other, who could run the fastest, who could catch the most fish and other things, she was always better than him and even when Feng was young he didn't hold that against her. Her success always drove him to be better and his admiration for her made their friendship a close one. Since taking the role of Kunimitsu she had not seen him as much and she missed sparring with him and wining. The one thing she felt he was better at than both her and Yoshmitsu was strategy; he could deduce and implement nearly flawless plans in most situations. For this mission they returned to the Manji village on the eve of the end of the king of iron fist tournament, and met with Feng to go over a battle plan.

Yoshimitsu abandoned the planning stage, unable to wrap his head around a workable strategy leaving Feng and her alone to plan. It was then she remembered how skilled Feng was. From just looking at a blue-print of the bunker he concocted several plans for entering and escape, within days he had a plan for the interior and how to make off with the money with total success. Kunimitsu was pleased with his work but, took heed at his warning that this was all guesswork, unless he knew the exact make up of the bunker there was no necessary conclusions he could make.

A few days before, the three of them came to the bunker to look at it, there was no way in for the three of them without alerting someone and that would have only made their current plight more difficult. So in totality they were going in based on guess work but, Kunimitsu felt confident as they were going in on Feng's guesswork.

The money they would get here would be immediate and could go straight to rebuilding Tetsujin, the people were already starting to rebuild but, without money it was a pathetic attempt. Their village still lay in ruin and many of them were living without houses. The Manji hunted for them and brought food and goods to them on a daily basis but, their morale was still as decimated as the day they were raided.

It bothered Kunimitsu to seem them that way. The Manji were brought up to not seek material but, they weren't unaware that the world did not always see things their way and the suffering of people who had to little created strife within her. Yoshimitsu called that feeling virtuosity and altruism but, she didn't take pride in feeling them, she simply wanted to make the feeling go away by doing the right thing; which, at this time, was taking the money from someone who didn't need it.

A familiar feeling came over her and she turned to her right and Yoshimitsu stood there, he smiled at her and she did not return the look.

"Well it is properly fortified." Yoshimitsu explained; she put her hand on her hip and shifted her weight.

"Will it be a problem?" she asked; he shrugged his shoulder slightly and moved closer.

"Its nothing of extreme importance," Yoshimitsu explained. "We've been through worse." he suggested.

"Did you find a distraction?" Kunimitsu asked; nodded slowly. "There's a large door that's automated, seems to be a source of contention for the security," he explained. "Opening would probably alert them in the right direction." he went on; she nodded.

"Can you do it?" She teased. "Or did you want me to get it done?" He shook his finger at her teasing.

"I am your superior," he stated jokingly. "Your tone is akin to insubordination."

At this she laughed at loud, the wind blew as she did and moved her hair like a puppet on an invisible string; she pushed his shoulder playfully.

"You're only _just_ noticing?" She asked between breaths of laughter; he watched her with a synthetic effect.

"I had been rather patient with it up til now." He spoke with jest and she laughed again as the wind blew around them and he turned his body to look at the strike team down below.

"I guess its time to get to business then," She suggested, he didn't turn around but, answered her.

"Indeed, it is."

There was a pause, something odd lingered in the air and stayed between them but, was broken by Kunimitsu's speech.

"Lets go," he turned around and smiled at her and lead the way.

The bunker sat under a small cliff, the top of the cliff was guarded by an outpost, the post lead to a roof entrance to the bunker that was accessible by a throw ladder. Though one could enter the bunker from a underground passage that ran directly under the outpost. The main entrance and exit of the bunker however was below the cliff at base; two large, floor sized doors that lead right into an open garage like area.

Yoshimitsu and Kunimitsu both walked calmly to the outpost, as they got closer to the outpost Kunimitsu had a revelation.

"What if they sound the alarm at just the sight of us?" she asked. "We aren't dressed like hikers lost or anything." Yoshimitsu nodded.

"Then we will have engrossed their attention away from the strike team as our preparation decreed." He answered; she frowned but, they were already approaching the booth with two armed men exiting it to meet them.

"Hold it, there" One of the men spoke. "This is a restricted area." He informed; the second arm man behind him kept a close watch and his gun ready to be aimed and fired.

"Ahoy!" Yoshimitsu greeted gleefully. "We are hikers whom have gone astray in the nearby mountains!" he explained; Kunimitsu laughed silently to herself; the guards didn't seem to be as amused.

"Hikers out this far?" he asked; Yoshimitsu nodded and gestured towards Kunimitsu.

"My female companion insisted that we go forward and not back and I'm afraid has now gotten us so off course that we require some assistance." The guard looked skeptical and opened his mouth to speak when he noticed the sword.

"Keep you hand away from the weapon!" He screamed, the other guard instantly put his weapon up to meet Yoshimitsu's height, the Manji leader cocked his head to the side in mock confusion.

"This thing?" Yoshimitsu questioned, pulling the sheath off his side. "Gentlemen I think you will find that this is just a simple antique sword and hardly a weapon." He chuckled. The lead guard didn't seem convinced, as he walked an inch close with his gun drawn on Yoshimitsu.

"Put the weapon down!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, at this Kunimitsu got nervous and muttered to the other Manji.

"Hurry it up." Yoshimitsu continued talking to the guards as if he hadn't heard her.

"No, gentlemen please, we come here for help, allow me to show you how useless this sword his." Slowly he unsheathed it. "See?"

It was then he moved the blade into the sun and reflected it onto the guards' eyes they both flinched and the second guard went for his walkie-talkie.

"Yoshi!" Kunimitsu warned but, in a flash the Manji leader had dashed forward passed both of them and slashed quicker than they could notice. With a prolonged silence they both fell to the dirt ground before issuing another word. Yoshimitsu turned to examine his doing and sheathed the sword.

"Simple!" he exclaimed and went over inside the booth; with her hands on her hips Kunimitsu followed, stepping over both men. She stood outside of the booth as Yoshimitsu grabbed the throw ladder.

"So whose going to be the distraction?" she asked him as he lifted it off the ground and over the cliff; it unfolding as it obeyed gravity, stopping mere inches from the roof of the bunker. He wiped his hands and made a polite gesture for her to climb down first.

"Seeing as how you enjoy the thrill of battle," he started as she climbed over. "I have decided that you shall distract the many armed guards as I raise the doors." He concluded; climbing onto the rope and lowering himself down.

Kunimitsu put her hands to the sides of the ladder's handling and slid down easily landing softly onto the hatch that needed to be open, she looked up and passed the sun's glare as Yoshimitsu stepped down the ladder one by one; she rolled her eyes at his exaggerated simplicity.

"Is there a reason you're choosing to be this slow?" she asked; He looked over his shoulder coming down a step and shook his head.

"Impatience is a virtue of the devil's making!" he answered; she shook her head in return.

"But sloth is a sin." She rebutted; at this he was on the hatch and looking at her.

"With time to spare" he spoke taking out the sword again. He stabbed into the hatch and used it as a lever popping the hatch open. "Yachtzee!" he exclaimed; at this Kunimitsu gave a very confused look in her mask.

"What?" She asked; he frowned and shrugged.

"I don't know," he admitted. "I saw it on an American television program" Kunimitsu shook her head and jumped onto the ladder in the hatch.

The inside of the bunker was vast but, not very glamorous. The walls were the bleak color of unwashed steel adorned with industrial lights every few feet. A grated walkway ran around the walls with a descending section, five floors in all, each with doors in the exact same places and no distinguishing difference between them.

The two Manji stood on the fifth and uppermost floor and looked around at the settings.

"Its really beautiful." Kunimitsu dryly observed; Yoshimitsu poked his head over the railing.

"The controls are on the third floor," he repeated from what Feng had told him. "From there I will raise the doors and allow our brethren in!" He said happily; Kunimitsu nodded.

"What are the chances we'll do this undetected?" she asked but, before he could answer another voice spoke up.

"What are you doing here?" the two Manji turned to see three guards one with a gun and two with batons facing them; Yoshimitsu smiled.

"Have fun." He happily spoke to Kunimitsu and jumped off the railing. She shook her head in amused disbelief and turned her attention to the guards.

She jumped onto the railing and ran on it towards the guards suddenly, the lead man seemed to be dumbfounded by Yoshimitsu's actions and failed to raise his gun and found himself the victim of Kunimitsu's kick. It knocked him to the ground swiftly and the other two guards followed his fall.

She darted away from the railing and caught one guard with a punch in the stomach and, dodged the second's baton swing. The swing went awry and sent him not facing her, she gave him a push with her foot onto his back and he fell forward over the railing.

"Oh come on!" she complained and as if fate heard her plea, a series of guards came around the corner with batons and two with something that looked like an electrical baton. She smiled in her mask and threw herself at them.

Yoshimitsu stuck the blade into the space between the door and the lock and brought it down like a guillotine, the lock split into two easily and the door softly swung open. The operator turned in his swivel chair to see Yoshimitsu standing in front of him.

"Greetings!" he spoke personably and then hit the man with the hilt of his blade, the man took the blow and fell out of the chair. Yoshimitsu rolled the chair away and sat in it. He looked over the controls for a long moment and scratched his head.

"Perhaps I should have inquired some information on how this works." He spoke t the comatose man and frowned. In the large window he could see the two large doors and under him the mess of buttons and keys to press. He fiddled around with some but, nothing happened and in his growing frustration pounded on the board.

"Confounded!" he swore fist shaking in the air, he went back to the controls studying them, holding his chin in hand looking over them carefully. "Feng did not say which would open them." He spoke to himself; it was then that something caught his eyes, he looked up out of the large window and saw Kunimitsu fighting off some guards, she jumped back quickly and then came forward knocking two men over strongly; Yoshimitsu bopped his head in pleasure and she turned her, masked, face to him; at that he gave her 'ok' hand gesture and smile, she shook her head at this action and went back to fighting.

Focused again Yoshimitsu scanned all the possible commands he could give and started to work on the board; eventually his hand came up against a switch that read 'garage' he thought for moment if this switch had been there the entire time and switched it. No sooner than when he did that an alarm blared in quick successions and the emergency lights flashed; a deep growl filled the bunker and Yoshimitsu saw the doors slowly begin to move and smiled whilst patting himself on the back.

"Good job!"

The blaring alarm echoed in the silent blue sky and caught the attention of every Manji, a quick hush came over them followed by a low whisper of concern. Feng looked across the way and saw several yellow lights flashing and two large steel doors parting. He frowned.

"I thought this was supposed to be subtle," He muttered to himself prior to turning around to the group of Manji. "Alright men," he called to them all. "Your fearless leader has set some type of alarm off and I can only assume that's the sign we've been looking for," he explained, several of the Manji chuckled. "Stay close and remember to watch out for your brother. Medics stay behind keep your distance. Lets go!" And with that they charged to the two steel doors opening at a snails pace.

It was long before they were flooding the inside, Feng's hair untied flowing to his shoulders and his staff in his hand. The Manji spread out on the floor taking on the guards who had no idea what was going on. A guard attempted to raise his weapon at Feng but, with a quick flick of his wrist he spun his weapon and knocked the gun out of his adversaries hand and promptly smashed it on his chest. The Manji looked around for Yoshimitsu or Kunimitsu, the former was nowhere to be seen but, Kunimitsu he could see on the fourth floor fighting off a long series of guards alone.

"Secure this floor and the entrance to the next level under!" he called to another Manji, who nodded in understanding; quickly taking the others in the direction indicated. Feng ran opposite towards the stairs to go assist Kunimitsu. He raced up the steel steps and was confronted by multiple baton wielding guards, with precision he swung is staff, so that each blunted side wrapped quickly against the weapons, breaking them or sending them fling out of the guards' hands. He found himself pinned between two guards and with reflex detached his weapon holding both pieces in either hand and striking the guards on either side of him.

He ran quickly to the next steps reattaching his weapon into one and saw more men going after Kunimitsu, he through his spear sending in through the air, perfectly landing on one of the guard's back and falling into the series. The struck guard attempted to get up and tackle Feng to the ground but, Feng was swift and somersaulted cleanly over the man's body as he approached, rolling onto the ground reclaiming his weapon and striking the others damaging blows as he went passed. The stairs too crowded he threw his body off the side, catching on to the side of the railing and pull himself into the air the rest of the way landing on the third floor, unwilling to deal with the plethora guards there, Feng rushed to the wall and kicked off of it, sending his body up and caught on to the underbelly of the fourth floor, he pushed himself up to the floor, up to his chest when a hand stretched out in front of him. He grabbed Kunimitsu hand and she pulled him up the rest of the way.

"Need any help?" he spoke to her with a big grin on his face, he jumped over the railing and swung upwards hitting a man on his chin sending him over the railing.

"Actually it was just starting to get fun." She spoke; he turned to her and gestured.

"Where's Yoshi?" he asked; she quickly gestured behind her and up and he saw the Manji leader jumping onto lamp fixtures on the ceiling, cutting them down to fall below, and then disappearing.

"We ought to go now, getting down will be easy but, getting back up won't be." He explained, she nodded silently and screamed for the Manji leader, his head turned and he vanished.

"How does this go again?" she asked Feng.

"The money isn't in this compound its in the next one over, we have to go under and go up the other-" Yoshimitsu appeared next to them.

"Are we ready to descend?" he asked; Fend nodded.

"We have to go under and come up on the other side to reach the storage facility. There's an elevator down that way," he pointed, in the chaos by the elevator several Manji were pushing back guards. "We'll go down that shaft to the bottom level, go across and come up on the other side." Feng explained; both Manji leader and second in command nodded.

"Go get the securing crew and we'll make way for them," Yoshimitsu ordered to Feng. "You get three squads and bring them along, have all the others stay behind and make sure they don't pin us in." He continued to Kunimitsu, she nodded as well and started to go on when he called out. "I've got twenty-seven so far." He announced; she turned back.

"Thirty two." She replied and was off.

"Thirty two!" he repeated crestfallen.

At the elevator Feng slashed quickly knocking down a group of men, securing that level, he could see there were a few stragglers but, ultimately the Manji had come out successful. Within moments he saw Kunimitsu and Yoshimitsu coming to him.

"Alright, get the door open." She instructed, Feng obeyed and began prying the elevator doors open with his spear, within moments there was a loud crack and he pushed the doors open easily. They could see the large steel rope moving downwards.

"Looks like we've got company." Feng spoke, Yoshimitsu poked his inside the elevator shaft and saw the elevator had just started to pull upward, he jumped in, kicked against the wall slashed the steel into two and landed back safely, just as the sound of the crashing elevator groaned up.

"Not anymore," he exclaimed.

"Down the rabbit hole Alice," Kunimitsu patted Feng on the back with force, he stumbled forward, an inch. Without turning around he spoke.

"Always the guinea pig." And jumped into the shaft.

Kunimitsu turned to Yoshimitsu.

"After you," he insisted and she jump down too followed by eight big Manji with large sacks, Yoshimitsu was last.

He threw himself inside and, like the other, kicked against the far wall to the other wall, going down in sections of jumps until he was on the roof of the crashed elevator, he jumped into the hatch and into the elevator, just in time to see Feng pry open the doors and one of the big Manji crash his head into a much smaller guard sending him flying backwards.

The eleven Manji raced through the hallway without incident; Feng spoke.

"This passage leads to the other bunker, we'll have to make our way up to the fourth floor, that's where the safe is, then we'll come back, up the shaft and out. Mirda has a plane waiting for us not too far." Yoshimitsu ran briskly.

"Not to dampen the mood but." He started but Kunimitsu finished his sentence.

"This sounds too easy?" she suggested, he nodded. "It surely does but, we're already here."

They came to a spot where it seemed as if the buildings were split as the finest of separations ran from the ceiling, down the walls to the floor, in front of them were two steel door interlocking into each other.

"This is it," Yoshimitsu began. "Stay alert." With that he slashed the controls and the doors sped open with the hiss of an opened air lock. No sooner than that sound the familiar sound of gunfire filled the space. Ahead of them on a platform facing them a group of guard's assembled firing upon them.

The ten other Manji ducked behind the wall but, Yoshimitsu was too far from the wall to jump back, as the bullets fired his body disappeared.

"Too easy?" Feng called out to Kunimitsu, who was on the opposite wall. She squinted at the gunfire but, shrugged.

"Its nothing he can't handle."

The guards shot indiscriminately timing their shooting so that they didn't run out of ammo at the same time. They were shocked to be suddenly raided but, were ready to protect what was on this side of the bunker. They saw the Manji behind the wall and tried to position themselves to shoot at them but, could not get passed the steel walls. What they didn't see was Yoshimitsu blink into existence on their platform, with his sword raised he ran towards them. By stroke of luck one of the men looked to his side and caught sight of him and before Yoshimitsu could strike turned and shot in his direction.

Frustrated the Manji vanished again seconds before being hit and reappeared on the other side, this proved to be no better as the guard closest to also turned and shot in his direction, again he vanished. He reappeared again on the far side of the platform and slashed at the hand railing holding it up. When he cut through the first he entire railing shifted, the guards stumbled with the new center of gravity, it was then he noticed there were several platforms and guard's amassing there with guns too, so without hesitation he slashed the other side and the platform on his side fell to the floor, causing a sliding decent for the guards on it, before he fell he vanished again.

"Oh, fancy…" Feng spoke from behind the wall seeing Yoshimitsu's doing. "I guess I get to show off my acrobatics." He smiled and ran into the room.

"Boys…" Kunimitsu sighed. "Follow our lead." She said to the other Manji and ran in herself.

Feng ran quickly up the now, horizontal platform and stabbed his spear onto it pulling himself up it, flipping in the air and using his momentum to send his body upward. To the second platform, his last jump landed him on the second platform with Yoshimitsu, the Manji leader saw him and looked surprised; Feng slashed the spear at a man with a gun and he fell over and toppled the others like bowling pins. Yoshimitsu smiled and looked at Feng.

"Keep up," he said in a sing song voice and slashed the two ends of the platform and vanished onto the next platform. As the platform slid downward Feng propelled his body forward to keep from falling back; as he did so he could see Kunimitsu on the other side of the large room making her way up a different platform, determined to beat her to it he moved faster.

On the next platform, he realized Yoshimitsu had not darted there, so the men on this platform weren't occupied with the Manji leader, at first he was relying on that surprise but, quickly adapted, throwing his body to the floor and swinging his bladed lance, the long weapon caught the legs of a few men and one fell over. He was quickly up and slashing more, disarming them as forethought to getting to the next floor.

Kunimitsu used one man's shoulders as a spring board and propelled herself up jump over the next avoiding his bullets, the front of her body slamming into his chest knocking him over, both spilling over the side of the platform, only her catching onto the platform, just as Yoshimitsu cut down the one above it, when it fell it careened into hers and almost caused her to fall, her body swung and with the momentum she threw herself onto the newly fallen one, following Yoshimitsu's quick actions. They had finally made it to the third floor and Yoshimitsu was slashing away, Feng and her arriving at the same time.

"Forty-four, forty-five!" Yoshimitsu gloated; she threw herself into the crowed, slashing, punching and kicking herself through them and when they all fell she took a deep breath.

"Whew" she exclaimed; she saw Yoshimitsu standing up right, he pointed to his chest with his thumb, with a proud glare.

"Fifty-one" is all he said; she nodded and flipped her hair.

"Fifty-three" she answered; his beaming face melted into disbelief.

"You jest!" he called angrily.

"You are _such _a sore loser" she said, a shade of actual frustration coming through.

"I did not lose, you are lying about your victories!" he protested; it was then that Feng cleared his throat loudly, they turned to him.

"Fifty-seven" he simply said; both of the other Manji looked away embarrassed. It was then the other Manji's climbed their way up, still feeling defeated Yoshimitsu began.

"Alright the money is through here" he stabbed the safe door but, the sword did not penetrate, he frustrated chuckled. "I guess the sword is punishing me for my jealousy." He scratched his head.

"What does that mean?" Kunimitsu asked angrily.

"It means I can't cut through." Yoshimitsu replied coolly.

"How are we going to get the money?" Kunimitsu asked slowly letting her words hit Yoshimitsu.

"There's a lock above it on the next floor, we can find it and break it." Feng suggested, the other Manji nodded at him and, threw themselves up to the next platform, Yoshimitsu lingered behind and looked at the sword. He touched it with his hand and it glowed ever so slightly, he smiled. This meant it still approved of him, despite his selfish emotions, so he ran to the platform edge and jumped to the next.

The fifth level was different, the door that lead into the hall way was clear and made of glass, it automatically opened with they were close. They all entered and walked down the immaculate, white hallway. Every few feet there were glass doors that lead to, what appeared to be, cells. Several of the cells were occupied by animals. Yoshimitsu looked into one with a kangaroo in it.

"What is all of this?" Kunimitsu asked; Yoshimitsu kept walking and spoke.

"I do not know but, I do not like the look of it." He answered; it was then he stopped and saw a white haired man sitting in one of the cells. The image bothered him so much, he cut the controls of the door and opened it. The other Manji quickly came over.

"Good gracious, thank you, thank you!" The man shook Yoshimitsu's hand feverishly. "They locked me in there _two_ days ago!" he explained

"You mean you're not with those other people?" Yoshimitsu asked; the man shook his head, his white hair bounced a little.

"No, not at all!" he answered, Kunimitsu came forward, knife drawn.

"He's lying" Yoshimitsu put his hand out stopping her.

"No," he said tersely. "I feel he is telling the truth" He went on. The older man, went over to a desk and looked at a computer, and returned.

"I was kidnapped by Genetic Corporation over a week ago," he angrily spat. "They forced me to give them information on genetic testing." Yoshimitsu nodded.

"Tell us something, mr…" he paused for the man's last name.

"Boskonovitch" he answered.

"Mr. Boskonovitch is there a way to lock the safe under us?" Yoshimitsu asked; the old man looked at Yoshimitsu from over his glasses.

"You're here to steal the money?" he asked sullenly; Yoshimitsu nodded. "Good!" Boskonovitch shouted. He walked back to the computer and typed into it for a moment. "Those rat bastards deserve it!" he typed some more. "there its unlock, have your way with it. The look on their faces when they realize what happened will be priceless" Boskonovitch went on. Yoshimitsu turned to the big Manji and nodded; they turned around and left to the safe.

"Are you going to stay here?" Yoshimitsu asked.

"There's no where for me to go, an old man like me can't get downstairs." Boskonovitch answered truthfully.

"We'll get you out of here" Yoshimitsu decided; Kunimitsu was surprised.

"We will?" She asked.

"Yes," Yoshimitsu answered her. "This man was kidnapped, he is not an enemy of ours, the right thing to do is to get him out of here and back into society." He explained; Feng nodded.

"Well lets get going, before more of them show up." He said, Yoshimitsu agreed but, Kunimitsu seemed less sure, she only watch the old man from within her mask until he walked by.

Yoshimitsu carried Boskonovitch to the second level just as the big Manji came out with the money.

"Fair amount?" Yoshimitsu asked.

"The biggest haul yet" one of the Manji answered.

"Good," Kunimitsu said. "Lets get the hell out of here." She spoke again and jumped off the side of the platform.

Everyone followed until on the ground floor again, when they were there Boskonovitch spoke.

"You are very interestingly dressed" he said to Yoshimitsu. The Manji leader laughed.

"I am the leader of these people, I have to be distinguishable." He answered.

"And who are you people?" the old man asked; Yoshimitsu gestured to Feng and the others.

"We're thieves, we steal from the undeserving rich and give to the virtuous poor." He explained.

"Like a band of Robin hoods!" Boskonovitch seemed excited. "I read about a group of people like that, they were called Manji" he said; at that everyone turned to face him.

"You know about the Manji clan?" Feng asked astonished.

"Yes," Boskonovitch eyed the young Manji over his glasses. "You're Manji aren't you?" he asked, at that everyone looked away again.

"Seems like we've made a name for ourselves." Kunimitsu said sarcastically.

"If _ he_ knows about us, imagine who else does!" Feng fretted.

"Its not important," Yoshimitsu said; he turned to Boskonovitch. "Yes we are Manji" Kunimitsu rolled her eyes.

"Extraordinary!" It was then they all stopped because Kunimitsu had, they were in the same hall with the curious separation from the ceiling to the floor, she stood on it.

"Look," she started. "When you get back to town you can't tell anybody, who we are," she said forcibly. "Is that under-"

It was ten that an audible click echoed, and Yoshimitsu noticed the movement around Kunimitsu, he dashed forward as quick as he could.

"Watch out!" he yelled, throwing her out of the way, just as the doors slammed shut, almost crushing her body. She fell to the floor, and heard a loud crash, followed by what sounded like a horrible scream. Her mask fell off and she looked up to see Yoshimitsu turn to her, his face pained, and his right hand cut off from the wrist up.

"Oh my God," she jumped up and grabbed him, the blood spouting from his arm, he grit his teeth and yelled. "Are you alright?" He shook his head and Feng came over.

"Holy God…" he whispered at the wound.

"I'm fine,"

The sound of footsteps echoed behind them and they all turned, guards all armed stood blocking their way.

"Shit!" Kunimitsu muttered but, the Manji leader unsheathed his sword with his left hand and in the blink of an eye struck them all down. He stood straight looking victorious with his back turned but, when he turned to face them, Kunimitsu could see something horrible in him, his eyes dim and he fell to the floor.

"Yoshi!" Kunimitsu and the others yelled. "Yoshi!"

But the limp body laid there, no answer. No humorous response.

Nothing but, a dead silence.


	44. The Final Chapter

**A Father's Fall**

As the sun began to set into the horizon, the water began to glisten with an array of gem like colors. The cloud began to slightly thicken, the sky cascaded into a series of colors like a kaleidoscope, the birds slowly began to recede back to their nest and prepare for the inevitable night that was soon to follow.

Heihachi looked up at the sky and sighed out loud, in his father Gi he waited for the last participant in the King of Iron Fist Tournament. Originally it was scheduled to be in a stadium but, he felt more at home here at Hon-Maru, it felt better. Within days all the information of the other participants would be analyzed and his aggressors would be revealed. He had heard that the Zaibatsu's Prototype JACK was successful against the other JACK, not only would the information from the battle be analyzed be used to come up with a better system for the Prototype JACK but, there was no way the JACK could escape the Zaibatsu's eyes and its owner would be unveiled.

The government contract for the JACKs was practically in hand and the Zaibatsu was on its way to the ultimate success.

He looked around Hon-Maru, not much had changed it was still beautiful and filled with his childhood. It was hard to believe everything that had happened here was so long ago. Heihachi's youth was behind him, he was fifty-two years old now, hardly the young man who started at this company looking to make a difference. Now he was reaching the slower years of his life and after this tournament he wished to live it out in peace.

This was the last big, catastrophic event of his life he surmised. After this he'd sit in his office signing papers watching other people do the big stuff. Heavy Industries was a self sustaining company and the Zaibatsu itself didn't require his attention every minute of everyday. In fact Kazi did more work than he did at the end of the day, he just collected the checks and lived comfortably.

Still at this stage of his life he had dreams. He still wished for world peace and he knew the Zaibatsu would be a big part of that, he would become the face of that movement hopefully; of course it be hard to convince the world that the man who sponsored and held the most dangerous and powerful fighting tournament in history was interested in world peace but, where there was a will there was a way.

The world watched him from this height and he looked back. Mountains seemed so far away, millions of people in this stretch of eyesight. For once in his life he felt a peace in his being, calmness. After years of stress and worrying he found himself on the last day of the tournament only one simple battle away from going on with the rest of his life. This part of his life wasn't something he'd reflect on either, why would he? So brutish and simple but, it had worked well. The lesson of using bait as equally important as the prey you sought was still true to this day, no one could resist the prize of a million dollars, the Mishima Zaibatsu to control and the bragging rights to fighting and beating Heihachi Mishima.

He mind floated to some of the events in the past and he smiled. It was really somewhat hard to believe that this was going to be the end of all of that. A lot of people had been hurt, some people had died, this would have to be worth it. Heihachi would have to put an end to all this fighting and bickering to make things right.

No. Things could never be 'right' again for some of those people but, this would help put his mind at ease.

He got onto his knees and closed his eyes. Meditation felt best in the net of nature. The cool air blowing about him, filled with smells of the natural world. It only help sooth his mind, like water the moment water hit a flame. The sizzle of the diffusion, so smooth and light, a mystical force that even though explained by science, still felt supernatural in its own right.

He breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth. While he was this way he felt as if he could feel the entire world around him, including the person approaching behind him. There was a slight tinge of disappointment, he'd only just began to feel peace and now it was time for violence again. He took another deep breath.

"Congratulations," he spoke sternly to the visitor. "You have defeated your way through the most powerful fighters in the world. You should be considerably proud of yourself." He stood, his back still facing the person. There was a pause and the air seemed to thin between them, Heihachi wasn't ready to let go of this inner peace yet but, something snapped him away from it.

"Not yet." The voice was one Heihachi hadn't heard before, not _this_ voice but, nevertheless he recognized it instantly. It sent a sizzle through the air that punctured to his skin right into his heart. On the intake of a breath he turned and when he saw him standing there it all came rushing out.

His thumb rubbed against forefinger quickly, so powerful it looked on the verge of starting a fire. Heihachi's eyes moved from the man's face to that action and back to his face, surprise gripping his body.

"Kazuya." His mouth spoke strongly despite his shock. It felt odd saying the name in reference to something actually in front of him but, this was real. He was tall, as tall as Heihachi, he looked just like Heihachi did at that age but, this wasn't the boy he remember, small and fragile; this man was big and powerful. His body wasn't overflowing with muscles but, the way he stood exuded power, something Heihachi had only seen in one other man. This man was definitely his son.

The name sounded odd enough coming from Lee those weeks back but, from Heihachi it was almost sickening. There was so much about this moment he had dreamed of but, it was all different than he imagined. He still felt scared, scared to look at this man, the man who had ruined his life. All he had waited for was doused in a moment of confidence; Heihachi didn't seem afraid or even that surprised. Kazuya wanted him to fall back, swoon, scream and beg for mercy but no he stood their still just as confident and smug as he always remembered and it drove him mad!

Just the way he said his name, there wasn't a hint of fear in it, it was almost as if he was _expecting_ this to happen. Where had he gone wrong? He had planned this surprise for years and here it was belittled by the old man's lack of emotion. 'Kazuya' he said, he said it with a little remorse and even the slightest bit of happiness. It bothered him so, his mind raced but, he kept his body still and focused on why he was here.

"Father," his voice croaked and he felt embarrassed by his weakness, he gulped looking Heihachi up and down. He looked the same, bigger by a little, less hair but, overall the same; dominant and powerful a statue of power. "Just as you instructed I've returned for my revenge." Kazuya went on slowly.

Heihachi watched every moment from his grown son, every muscle movement. Every electric pulse that went through his nerves, it was all like a strange dream, he felt almost as if he wasn't there in that moment, in that place, the same place they had last seen each other, such a different time then but, Heihachi remembered it clearly. Every last action and every last word.

"Of course you are, son." He said the last word cautiously, afraid if he said it too loud or too strongly Kazuya's body would blow away in the wind. He felt happy; there was a happiness inside him that couldn't be explained. "I'm so proud to see-"

"Shut up!" Kazuya barked, his fingers working furiously. "No, you aren't proud, you made this. This is the day you rue ever doing what you did to me." Kazuya snapped.

"I know Kazuya but," Heihachi gulped; this was a fragile moment there was something he wanted to get across. "Do you remember what I told you that day?" Heihachi asked; Kazuya scoffed; this not how he imagined it. He thought they'd be raining blow upon each other madly until he decimated the elders body.

"I remember everything about that day," he ripped his shirt of and pointed to the scar on his chest. "This is what you did to me!" he shouted. The voice echoed in the silence; just as it did all those years ago. Heihachi looked at the scar and remorse swelled into his body; he felt nauseated looking it the scar. It wasn't that it was gruesome, it was the idea that it was on _his_ son by _his_ doing.

"I told you that if you were my true son you would climb back up that cliff and seek me out one day," Heihachi explained. "I knew you were powerful and that power is what I needed to instill in you, so you could be powerful enough to-"

"No!" Kazuya shook his head violently. "Don't you spout words to justify what you did!" he screamed loudly. "I was a _child_, I didn't know any better, I didn't understand you then, I'll never understand you. You are a monster!" His voice was weak, like it was when he was a child. Heihachi's eyes closed and he fought back tears, two different emotions in him; he wanted to cry because of how his son felt and he wanted to cry because his son was actually here with him.

"I was young, I was faced with something I can't explain to you," Heihachi practically pleaded. "I had to do _something_. Things would have been far worse for you now had I done something differently." Heihachi explained; but Kazuya didn't seem swayed by his words.

"I fought back death for months," Kazuya started. "My body was broken into nothing, every waking moment I lived through a pain that would kill a thousand men and all the while I knew that my _father_ was the reason for it all. That drove me insane." Kazuya went on.

"But look at what you've become, Kazuya," Heihachi started, gesturing towards his powerful son. "A Mishima like all the others. Powerful, smart and uncompromising. You are more powerful than any other person in the world."

"I suppose I ought to thank you for that."

"I'm not excusing my actions."

"Don't try to belittle what you did!" Kazuya snapped. "Don't pretend you can just admit guilt, that you can use my power as an excuse for what you did to me. _You_ did not make me powerful." Kazuya explained.

"Didn't I?" Heihachi started. "Wasn't it those thoughts of my that got you over your pain. When your body was wracked with pain, wasn't it the thought of putting me through that pain and worse what allowed you to continue on and become the man you are today. Wasn't it that that eliminated your weakness?" Heihachi asked; Kazuya shook his head, holding it.

"No, No!" he screamed with a rage that forced Heihachi to step back. "You did not _make_ me!" he called. "I spent my entire life refusing you. I became powerful because I wanted to be this way. You weren't my crutch!"

"I gave you the will to go on," Heihachi boasted. "And stole from you the will to die."

Kazuya flashed a look at him and pointed his finger at him.

"Don't you try to get out of this," he growled. "I have been waiting for this revenge forever. Nothing you can say will take it from me." Heihachi watched his son and saw the stubbornness in him and felt a little disappointed that Kazuya couldn't see what he had done for him. He crossed his arms.

"Your revenge will not be handed to you." He spoke strongly. "I told you that day, if you found the power to return to me you could try your hand at defeating me," Heihachi recalled. "You may try to defeat me." Kazuya snarled.

"You have given me nothing," he disagreed. "Even if you hadn't held this contest I would have found you." Kazuya explained.

"Surely," Heihachi shrugged. "I know what it means to settle your problems head on. If you think that this is the only course of action to take, I will provide you with the chance to confront your destiny." Heihachi went on; this angered Kazuya even more.

"No, I've stolen this chance," he commanded. "I can feel the fear in you; you would have avoided me as long as you could. This chance is one I made myself." He insisted; Heihachi shrugged; his aloof attitude was phony but, he wanted Kazuya to confront his image of his father exactly how he had constructed it. So he had to play the part.

"If that's what you believe." The patriarch spoke.

"It is what I know!"

"Then there is only one way to settle this," Heihachi started. "Isn't there?"

Kazuya's face opened up at this proclamation and his hands clenched into a fist.

"The posters for this tournament said 'there can only be one iron fist'" Kazuya relayed. "It _ will_ be me." Kazuya boasted; Heihachi smiled, though it pained him to do so but, the smug, powerful business man was the role he had to play to fix all the wrongs he and others had created.

This was the price of freedom.

"You shall try." Heihachi unwrapped his arms and flowed them into his fighting stance, spacing his legs, shifting his center of gravity, pulling his power to his fist.

Kazuya smiled too; this is what he had been waiting for, for what seemed to be many, many life times. His arms came up and stood in stance, not unlike his father. The sun beat down on them and it felt as if they were the only two people in the world. Father versus son, man versus beast, good versus evil.

With a power he had never exhibited before, Kazuya threw himself at Heihachi, his fist braced for impact and soared through the air and after moments that fell like anchors off a beached ship, finally smashed into Heihachi's arms.

The ecstasy of landing a blow on the older man was undeniable. Kazuya felt every muscle in his body shiver with delight. His blood popped with enriched glee and his bones stiffened with anticipation as his mind screamed at him to continue on, harder, more powerful!

Heihachi's arms blocked the punch but, he felt the power behind his young son's attack. This wasn't like anyone he had faced before, his power was overblown, fueled by years of desperateness and want for revenge that can only be obtained now. Heihachi opened his arms, knocking Kazuya back shortly and it was enough. With an equal speed, Heihachi returned three blows on his son's chest, quick, precise, powerful blows that confused Kazuya.

He knew Heihachi would be strong but, being here in the moment made it different. Every blow against him was a reminder that defeat was possible; something he hadn't considered in totality before.

What did it mean to lose this fight? He couldn't fathom it, the lost of the fight would be more crushing than death itself. He _lived_ to defeat Heihachi, his existence had no other will than to take Heihachi and break him into pieces and watch his life spiral into oblivion. To have such a thing defeat him only meant that he had no purpose, that his life was voided and that he could not accept.

A fourth blow from Heihachi, was pushed away by Kazyua. Heihachi's leg thrown away just in time to stop another crushing blow, Heihachi's body swung to the side and Kazuya collided into Heihachi's side and the elder Mishima released a pained groan from it before leaning over to compensate for the pain.

Kazuya continued his assault with an uppercut straight to Heihachi's chest, to his rib cage, a series of perfectly placed bones that Kazuya wished grind into dust, while his father watched in horror but, Heihachi was cunning and caught his punch with his own hands. Holding Kazuya in place Heihachi brought the back of his fist across Kazuya chest. The boy's body flinched awkwardly at the pain, flying back but, jerking back into place because of Heihachi's grip, and then smashed downward again as Heihachi's fist came down like a hammer upon his back.

Kazuya's lungs slammed into contraction, the air forced out as if it was alien or diseased, he heaved in pain as her fell to the ground but, found that the horror wasn't over. As the ground raced up to him, Heihachi's leg came faster and eventually smashed into his chest again, pushing him upward and spiraling back.

His body flew through the air and slammed back onto the dirt ground, the cool soft grass made no difference; it could have been steel judging from the force of his fall. His fist clutched the dirt and grass and ripped it out of the ground, he stumbled back fear in his heart as Heihachi calmly approached him, his face stern without comment of the battle. A stone in a maelstrom it was unmoved unfazed by Kazuya's rage.

He scrambled to his feet and worked back into his fighting position; he took shallower breaths, his confidence now a shaky bridge, his arms trembling, his mind fragile, he stared at Heihachi but, avoided his eyes. He jumped forward and Heihachi struck but, the fist missed Kazuya as he crouched, swinging his leg in a sweeping kick. Surprised but, quick thinking Heihachi blocked the kick and jumped back. He watched his son with questioning eyes, he pointed at Kazuya.

"That was a Mishima style martial art move…" Heihachi recognized; his eyes scanned Kazuya for clues. "Who taught you that?" He asked with shock in his voice; he was the only person alive who could have possibly taught that to him.

Kazuya took such glee in Heihachi's shock, it fed him, it encouraged him, it sent a wave of new found resolve through his body. Yes, the old man did have a weakness, his confidence was chipped and Kazuya would stick his finger in it until he wedged the crack into a gaping hole and then he'd tear it apart and rip it to shreds.

"You'll I'm full of surprises." Kazuya sneered; tearing back at Heihachi with another series of attacks. Heihachi blocked, dodged and took them all with stride but, the sheer rage in the boy through him off.

How could he know the things he did?

A punch came through and Heihachi grabbed his arm pulling Kazuya close to him.

"You fight a battle with no end!" Heihachi explained. "What will it prove to defeat me? What will happen then?" He asked; Kazuya snatched but, couldn't pull away.

"You took _everything _from me," Kazuya spat. "I will take everything from you!" He exploded.

"Even if you could defeat me," Heihachi started. "It would prove me right, you are _my_ son and I foretold you would be this powerful. If you were to stop me I would only be proud."

"Then let it be!" The power of Kazuya's voice alone may have knocked Heihachi over but, the blow he struck was horrific in power, Heihachi stumbled back as his arms radiated with pain. Kazuya, like a wild animal, only continued on attacking in quick burst of power; keeping Heihachi on the defensive; the older Mishima still shocked by the flow and strength of the attacks.

Kazuya grabbed Heihachi's hand and brought his leg across the patriarchs back, causing him to bend over, he held there briefly and then brought the leg back across Heihachi's face releasing him and sending the man crashing back into the ground.

"Now you see?" Kazuya gloated; "Now you see how powerful I really am!" he screamed as Heihachi rolled back to his feet, his brow sporting a thin line of clean, red blood. Heihachi stood up right and faced his son, looking at him in his eyes deeply, piercing through his body. He was strong and Heihachi's body was sore but, there was a lightness in his heart.

"You've grown very strong," Heihachi commented. "Just as I was at your age."

"Shut up!" Kazuya snapped. "I am more powerful than you ever were or could _ever _be!" he exclaimed but, Heihachi shook his head confidentially.

"You don't even know," He said quietly. "What has transpired here. The victor I've already won."

"Liar!" Kazuya barely let the words fall from Heihachi's mouth when he screamed blindly and leapt back at him. His rage so full he couldn't control himself. Every kick and punch escaping thoughtlessly from his body upon Heihachi, he lost sight of everything, where he was, what he was, how he'd gotten here, why. He lost the will for one moment over his anger and Heihachi managed to slip a single forceful blow into his belly.

The attack made the ground underneath them raise up and slid Kazuya back feet but, the pain fed something in him, something he had not felt in such a long time.

The rage was gone, he felt at a reasonable peace. It was if the soon had melted softly into the sea and quietly painted on the curtain of night in the sky. There was no shouting, no screaming, no harsh respite, no confident, anger filled monologues. It was just Heihachi and himself, standing on a small plot of Earth surrounded by the abyss. Death meant nothing, there was nowhere else to go after all, his goal came with no consequence and losing was the same, it would all be turned back to nothingness anyway.

He stood straight and looked at Heihachi, his father, the man who brought him life onto this world and just as easily tried to snatch it away. There only but one way to deal with that kind of fiend.

"No matter what happens here, Heihachi," He spoke calmly. "It all ends." Heihachi watched him and nodded.

"Now you understand."

A single autumn leaf blows.

Kazuya was under him, Heihachi had seen the attack coming but, didn't read it correctly. He punched straight while the youth went down. His single powerful debilitating punch fell harmless to the wind and Kazuya, gripping his might in one blow pushed off the ground and collided his fist with Heihachi's chin,

Both airborne for seconds that hung like eternities, one with his fist to the sun and the other falling to the ground. Heihachi hit the ground before Kazuya came back to the Earth, and he found himself in a strange way.

Something came over him, something he had never felt before, it wasn't pain, it was something else, something more, something terrible. It was as if the Earth had grown hands and held him down where he was, it was as of every last regret he has endured since birth had resurfaced and gripped his body. His mind spoke but, his body disobeyed, he struggled without moving, he writhed in total silence.

What _was_ this?

In one clear moment he realized he had been defeated, physically he was fine but, something in him had snap with a horrible result, he fell dumb to the world and may never stand again. For a quick moment fear enveloped his body but, quickly passed, this was not optimal but, it wasn't the worse. When he was younger he had made a promise to himself to do something, to fix something and it haunted him all his life until that day he came to his son and brought him here to this place but, here today it was completed. He had raised a man of anger but, one devoid, powerful by his own merits. A natural unaffected Mishima.

The last of them.

Kazuya stood there, for a long moment. He said nothing, he felt nothing, he thought nothing. Heihachi lay there, motionless but, he knew alive. He took a deep breath and sighed. He had one, he had defeated his father Heihachi Mishima. His body felt alive with energy that boiled quietly inside him. The green grass swayed ever so slightly in the wind and the clouds lie still as Heihachi in the sky.

He walked slowly over to his father. All those years wondering what this moment would be like exploded into this peaceful moment. There was no need to gloat or to shout or to scream or to make a spectacle out of this moment. It was absolute on its own, this was the height of emotion. The air felt alive as if it were all packed in around the two bodies ready to explode, violently out into the world.

The sweat from his brow stopped; the blood in his veins cooled. He felt super aware. He could feel every blade of grass under his feet, every last grain of dirt, it was as if he were a thousand feet tall, a giant among the tiny man who was his father hidden in the skyscrapers of grass blades. Somewhere in the distance a bird made a sound, it echoed in Kazuya's mind. A stammering dub, sound, he hated it so and made it stop.

Not before long he was standing over Heihachi, his father, his mortal enemy of sorts. He looked down at the motionless, yet alive, body without moving his head. His eyes turned down, almost into a bottomless pit, like starting into an abyss as Heihachi looked up at him. It would have a different sort of feel if the eyes looking back at him were full of fear but, he could see they had already accepted their fate. It was the one thing he'd give his father credit for, he was a brave man, strong willed but, ultimately stupid and now broken.

Slowly and very methodically Kazuya knelt down to his father, dressed in a black Gi, that he could recall seeing once before, and placed him under his arms and lifted him up. He held Heihachi like a baby, as if the roles were reversed as if he were the father. He held Heihachi strangely careful not to let him fall. He took in the scent of his father and was intoxicated, it smelt like sixteen years ago, Heihachi's skin next to his own felt oddly good and so he held his father close and walked on, as if taking him to his bed. He stared forward and didn't look him in the eye, his face without any expression, like a robot or a man whose soul was on a holiday.

Heihachi looked up at his son, he had no other choice but, wanted nothing more. He could not move still but, his eyes gazed upon his son, his grown son. Strong and powerful and with a will dominate of the world. It meant his collapse but, fathers did that for sons, they sacrificed and Heihachi had no doubt that his sacrifice today would bring Kazuya to the man he deserved to be. All the doubt, all the self hatred and scheming and ignoring of his past was all through, he had taken a chance and raised his son to be this man. A man with a will stronger than his father's.

They both came to a stop; Heihachi wanted to smile at his son and let him know it was alright, that he didn't resent Kazuya for any of this. That the price of freeing his son from that demon was well worth it but, his body simply would not move, and so he let his mental will rest, the boy would learn in time.

Kazuya stopped there, and stared straight for a long moment, right at the edge of the cliff. There were so many ways he could complete his revenge but, this was the most appropriate. This way the circle would be complete and he could finally enjoy his life as the victor of this battle. A joy welled up inside him as he looked to the mountains afar, there was a world of weaker beings than this one in his hands out there. A world he could explore freely, free from the confines of plotting revenge.

A world he could dominate.

It was then that he looked down at his father, he wanted to say something but, it was already said in the look.

Heihachi watched his son look down and had instant relief knowing that he had accepted him in some way but, that relief melted then their eyes melt. Heihachi wasn't afraid of death, or pain or any of that sort but, the look he saw caused him to panic in side. Kazuya stared him queerly with a look that was on his face but, not of him and Heihachi's heart went aflame with fear.

Kazuya's eyes burned red.

The same exact look Jinpachi had on his face, the same strangeness he had seen before on his son when he stole the book. All in one second in time he knew he had failed, that the demon inside had played him for a fool and was completely in control of his son. His legs thrashed, his arms swung madly his mouth opened and screamed so loud it cracked the sky but, in reality he just lay there in the things arms, silently, motionless still.

Kazuya looked away from his father knowing the old man understood and with no hesitation, let him slip from his arms into the bottomless dark below. The body fell in the air, loose like a rag doll until it disappeared from sight. A million feet into hell, the wind blew coldly against the nape of his neck, he had been rubbing his thumb and forefinger together but, realizing it he stopped.

And a satisfied smirk crept upon his face.


End file.
